Seeing eye of children

Seeing eye of children

Not that I'm a suspicious person, but Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono's recent gathering in Jakarta for 100 street children
to watch Spider-Man 2 could not have been geared toward anything
but a public relations boost for the presidential candidate.

Unfortunately, Susilo himself defeated the very goal of the
publicity stunt by talking to children as he would to fellow
politicians.

The children were streetwise-intelligent, and this was
reflected in the questions they posed to Susilo. One child, Anda,
asked whether Susilo would evict them from their dwellings once
he came into power. Redundantly, Susilo went on and on about how
once the economy improved, they would not have to face eviction.

Susilo should have been more forthcoming and honest in his
answer. He could have said, for instance, "If I were the
President, I would tell large corporations to set aside some of
their profit, after taxes and operational expenditures, to build
shelters on the outskirts of Jakarta for you children to live in
and study and learn skills, so you could all help yourselves and
your parents."

Or, "If more large corporations paid attention to their
responsibilities, many social problems, including the increasing
number of you children who have to live on the streets, could be
overcome."

He should have had more respect for the children and see
beyond the surface to try and see what prompted questions such as
Anda's.

Children are astute -- they are able to see through us and
determine whether or not they can trust us adults, even
politicians vying for the presidency, such as Susilo.

SURTININGSIH WT

Jakarta