Story of Legislator Hanging Out in DPR Canteen Mistaken for Expert Staff
Recently, a viral post emerged of a DPR RI member being mistaken for staff Tenaga Ahli (TA) while gathering in the canteen area of the Parliamentary Complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta. It turned out that the individual was Syafruddin, a member of Commission XII of the DPR RI from the Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa (PKB) faction.
In the circulating video, it was narrated that a Tenaga Ahli (TA) staff member at the DPR mistook Syafruddin for a colleague. The TA individual reportedly spoke in a raised tone, presenting themselves as someone with authority.
Syafruddin spoke out about the moment. He explained that he was simply gathering casually in the canteen, as is his habit when there are no meeting schedules. “I was just hanging out as usual because I’m in the habit of lounging in the canteen if there’s no meeting schedule. And suddenly, a friend I don’t know— I don’t know that person. He just talked a lot, as if showing off that he was in charge or something like that,” said Syafruddin when contacted on Saturday (11/4/2026).
He mentioned that he did not interrupt the TA staff’s statements. However, Syafruddin was suddenly asked about his position as TA for which DPR member.
“I didn’t dare to interject, just stayed quiet. Then suddenly, he took the initiative to ask, ‘Brother from where?’ So I answered ‘I’m from Kaltim.’ Then he asked,” said Syafruddin.
“He asked again ‘Brother, where do you work?’, ‘I work at the DPR.’ Then he immediately chimed in, ‘Brother, whose TA are you?’ So, I answered directly ‘Well, brother, I’m a member, brother,’” he added.
Syafruddin said that after the conversation, the situation became awkward. He assessed that the expert staff was embarrassed for having spoken in a superior manner.
“Then, he started to be surprised. I just enjoyed it, I didn’t respond, just treated it as normal talk. That’s where you could see the uncomfortable atmosphere. The feeling of unease, because maybe, bluntly speaking, he was embarrassed, having already started talking like that,” he revealed.
He mentioned that he doesn’t always wear formal attire or his DPR pin during free time. Syafruddin stated that he was not offended by the DPR TA staff.
“Well, because I can’t always appear formal, exclusive or whatever. I’m just casual like that.
I’m not offended, it’s normal. Because we interact with many people who have different characters,” said Syafruddin.
“There are those who like to talk big, those who talk humbly, those in between. So for us, it’s normal to meet people who talk big, we’re used to it,” he added.
Syafruddin then revealed that he had a similar experience in East Kalimantan. This Chairman of the PKB East Kalimantan branch admitted that he doesn’t mind others’ perceptions of him.
“In the past, when I was just starting as Chairman of PKB Kaltim, I like to get my hair cut short. Sometimes the barber would ask ‘Brother, are you security?’ I’d just say yes. Meaning, I’m used to it,” said Syafruddin.
“It’s happened many times. Being belittled by people is normal. Especially at the beginning when we first ran for legislature. We’re fine with it. Meaning, situations like that are normal for DPR members who enjoy interacting and meeting the public,” he added.