Sarmuji: Pancasila Must Be Re-cultivated Through Cultural Strategy in the Digital and AI Era

Jakarta – Golkar Party faction chairman in the Indonesian House of Representatives, M Sarmuji, has invited the younger generation to re-cultivate the values of Pancasila, rather than simply memorising them, by revitalising its source values rooted in local wisdom and adapting its transmission channels to the digital and artificial intelligence era. The call was made by Sarmuji during a National Insight Seminar titled ‘Pancasila is Not to be Grounded, But to be Grown’ at the Universitas Pembangunan Nasional (UPN) ‘Veteran’ Jakarta on Tuesday, 14 July 2026. Sarmuji began his presentation by reminding the audience that Pancasila is not a foreign deposit that needs to be ‘lowered’ to Indonesian soil, but rather something that was born from the earth of Indonesia itself. He therefore argued that the recently popular phrase ‘re-grounding Pancasila’ is incorrect. He quoted a statement by Proclamator and first President of the Republic of Indonesia, Sukarno, from the book Bung Karno: Penyambung Lidah Rakyat by Cindy Adams: ‘I did not create Pancasila. What I did was dig deep into the earth of our own traditions, and I found five beautiful pearls.’ ‘If Bung Karno himself said that, then caring for Pancasila means caring for the source of the excavation — the culture and original beliefs that live in various regions, not just memorising the five principles,’ Sarmuji said. The Secretary General of the Golkar Party cited several examples of Nusantara’s local wisdom as the source of the nation’s noble values, such as the Javanese ancestral teaching from Serat Wulangreh by Pakubuwono IV: ‘aja adigang, adigung, adiguna’ — a prohibition against boasting of strength, power, and intelligence. Similar wisdom, he said, also lives in the Bugis-Makassar concept of siri’ na pacce, the Balinese Tri Hita Karana, and the Batak Dalihan Na Tolu — all of which lead to the wisdom in deliberation represented by the fourth principle of Pancasila. Beyond preserving the source, Sarmuji stressed the importance of revitalising the channels for instilling these values. In the past, he noted, noble values were passed down through fairy tales, traditional songs, and wayang shadow puppetry — methods that were emotionally close and accepted within the family space. He argued that modern equivalents are needed for the current era, such as social media, artificial intelligence, films, and music, which should be used as means to re-cultivate Pancasila values rather than being viewed merely as threats.