The Tommy syndrome
The Tommy syndrome
The fairy tale-like story of Tommy Soeharto's progress to fame
and wealth as the youngest son of former president Soeharto, and
now for a week or so perhaps the police's most wanted man, is
known to every school child.
Too much comment has been made on the legal aspects of the
case and the tragic, comical role played by the lawyers when at
the most critical stage in the man-hunt they pretended not to
know the whereabouts of the "crown prince"; they seemed to also
forget all of Tommy's cellular phone numbers! The Police were too
slow to react, the Attorney General was waiting for the police,
and the district court judge forgot the key of the drawer where
he was supposed to have hidden the presidential order denying
Tommy's request for clemency.
If Johan Strauss, or Frans Lehar, George Bizet, Jerome Kern,
or even our own Ismail Marzuki were still alive, they might be
inspired to compose an operetta. But for an opera somebody needs
to be stabbed or shot dead and this, thank God, has not happened
yet.
Some editorials described Tommy as a coward when he refused to
account for his misdeeds and, instead of graciously surrendering
and entering the prison cell, sought refuge somewhere. Believe
me, there is no safer place than in prison and his lawyers would
do well to inspect the daily menu and find out whether he will be
allowed to bring his spring bed and favorite dog.
All I can say about Tommy is that he is a spoiled child. No
wonder given the fact that he has been allowed for so long to set
up an unlimited number of companies and allowed to hold
monopolies and enjoy state credits. But he apparently missed his
opportunity to be educated like the son of a hero. He probably
also rarely, if ever, read the biographies of great and valiant
patriots. He has never learned to accept defeat. His parents
should have told him of the many great people in human history
who had failed, like Galileo not to mention Columbus.
He has never visited the slums of Bombay and Rio de Janeiro.
Nothing and nobody stood in the way. He should have been
repeatedly exposed to the miseries and abject poverty and hunger
suffered by the majority of the people. The lesson that there are
more people suffering in life than enjoying their wealth should
have been part of his education. It's all right that he likes to
race expensive cars but he should also be taught how to care for
the downtrodden.
It is indeed sinful to become rich and powerful alone by all
possible means, even by violating the law. This is a lesson for
parents who can afford to give everything to their children but
who never remind them of the people's suffering. This nation
lacks young men of character who can accomplish much for
themselves and for other people as well.
GANDHI SUKARDI
Jakarta