Who should lead our nation?

Who should lead our nation?

From Berita Yudha

Over the last few days we have again heard debate about whether our leaders should be military or civilian figures. Some say that civilians will not be ready to lead this nation for another five years, while others believe civilians are, in fact, ready to shoulder the task and say that President Sukarno, despite his shortcomings, was a good example.

This debate, which is becoming increasingly interesting, has included not only those holding power or politicians but also experts. Sharp differences in opinion are found even among the experts.

As a "marginal" observer, I also wish to contribute my ideas or even shout them. Being such an observer I have opted to shout from my marginal position. Yet believe me, although I shout from this position, I wish to let my voice be heard from the middle. It means I never bother about the dichotomy, which seems to be getting more acute and tends to be simply bullshit.

Why is it that amid our Indonesian diversity, we have always been asked to think within the framework of narrow-mindedness: left-right, front-back, black-white, Javanese - non - Javanese and so forth. As globalization seeps into our way of thinking, why have we taken several steps backward and let ourselves be dragged into small alleys, and not the other way around: looking at everything in a wide horizon?

Being modest, I only wish to say in a few simple words that what we need is someone who is indeed "capable of leadership". It does not matter if he wears a checked shirt, a patterned one or even a uniform in a single color.

M SUPRYATNA

Jakarta