Why I didn't set up my own business

Why I didn't set up my own business

By Idrus

I am an employee of an Indonesian import-export company. My
office is a newly painted garage. I have a desk the size of a
pocket handkerchief and an old rocking chair.

When I come to the office in the morning, I open an almost-
empty cabinet and take out a stack of last month's newspapers and
put them on my desk. These are the acts of a man eager to start
in on lots of accumulated work. After this, I sit in my rocking
chair and read the papers until my head droops onto my chest.

One time, while asleep in that chair, I found myself dreaming.
The chief executive officer of the company came to me and asked
in a nasal voice: "Why aren't you working?"

"Why do I have to work?" was my reply.

"You're my employee, aren't you?"

"No," I asserted, "I'm an angel."

Hearing this, he opened his wallet and gave me Rp 500. "Go
back to being an ordinary human being," he told me. Then he
jumped into his sedan.

After two months of being treated like an angel, a being that
does not need to eat or drink, I was invited to the CEO's home
one Sunday.

His house was beautiful and modern and located on one of the
city's main streets. The property was so large that the CEO was
able, or perhaps considered it necessary, to have separate
entrance and exit gates for his car and the cars of cabinet
ministers. He mentioned to me one or two times that he was
certain state ministers would call on him at home.

Because I came on foot, I did not have to worry about which
entrance and exit to use.

I was given a warm welcome by the CEO and two other people.
One was a pretty woman who turned out to be the CEO's new wife,
and the other, a middle-aged man, was the vice president of a
small bank.

After inviting me to sit down on a comfortable chair, the CEO
said to us: "All of you probably know about the new import
regulations which oblige us to pay 40 percent in advance before
we can import anything. I ask you, gentlemen, where are we
supposed to get that kind of cash? You can be sure that no one is
going to want to use his own savings for such a purpose."

Because the CEO was looking at me as he spoke, I felt
obligated to offer my opinion. "But these regulations don't apply
to our company..."

I would have continued but the CEO's face turned red with
anger causing me to immediately look down at my shoes.

His next words seemed to be a reprimand: "How can they not
apply to our enterprise? We are an import-export company, aren't
we?" He laid special stress on the word "import".

After that, the CEO did not look in my direction again.
Instead, he directed his remarks to the bank vice president and,
in the course of their conversation, an agreement was reached
that the bank's president would use his influence with a credit
bank to obtain a loan for the CEO. For his assistance in
acquiring the loan, the CEO promised to appoint the bank
president director of our import-export company.

Quite unexpectedly the CEO then said to me: "And beginning
from now, I appoint you deputy director."

The blood drained from my face and it was not until I arrived
home that I fully realized that I had become a person of very
great importance in the business sector.

The CEO then came to the office almost every day. Every time
he came, he would ask if there was a letter for him. But every
time he asked, I would have to spread my empty hands and shake my
head regretfully.

One day, a letter really did come. As the CEO's car stopped in
front of the office, I waved the letter at him from the inside of
the office. He jumped out of his car and like a small child
snatched the letter from my hand. He paid careful attention to
the letter as he opened it and read its contents.

Suddenly, he shouted like a mad man: "We got it! We got it!"

At once he was back inside his car yelling to me, "Come
tomorrow to the house and pick up your pay."

This was the first time I felt satisfied during my stint as
deputy director.

Even though I received only one month's salary -- unless he
thought that the Rp 750 he gave me was for five months' work -- I
began to have real hopes for the firm. The CEO had been able to
borrow Rp 400,000, the maximum permitted by the credit bank. Now
surely, I thought, the company would grow.

In my imagination I would receive piles of letters each day
from both inside the country and abroad. I would cheerfully seek
overseas tenders and gradually form a staff of assistants.

But none of this actually happened. Our import-export company
did not import or export anything at all and the firm's director
never stuck his nose inside the door again. Eventually word came
that the CEO was buying up agricultural land and homes. Thus,
from being the CEO of a company, he had become a prominent
property holder.

As for me, I went back to being an angel. I had long since
thrown away my deputy director's tie and was spending my days
doing nothing but playing chess with an unemployed friend of
mine.

Unfortunately, since my friend could not tell a castle from a
knight, he made the same moves with both pieces. So we finally
stopped playing and just swapped stories all day.

One day, my friend said to me: "You have lots of experience in
this company. Why not set up one of your own? I can help you get
credit from a bank. If you like, you can become director and I'll
be a member of the board. You'll be able to live in comfort and
won't have to work here anymore."

I clasped my friend's hand in earnest. "That's a great idea.
Let's do it! Try to arrange it for me."

In the garage the two of us danced for joy.

The next day, my friend returned to inform me that he had
called on the justice minister and had explained to him our
reasons for setting up a company. The minister had agreed in
principle to help, but told my friend that he needed Rp 100 to
cover various expenses. The money was to come from me.

Before my friend could finish what he had to say, I
interrupted him. "It looks like my boss found out about our plans
to set up a new firm because yesterday he paid me two month's
salary all at once."

"Does that mean you won't be setting up a company?" my friend
asked.

"Now there's no more reason to," I explained. "The CEO has
promised to pay my salary regularly from now on."

This made my friend angry. "You don't have the guts, that's
all. And to hell with the guy who calls himself a company
director but is afraid to compete with us."

I did not respond. I looked at my shoes with their holes in
the toes.

But my friend's attitude had changed completely. He was like a
man begging. "Well if you really did get two months' pay, then
surely you won't mind lending me Rp 100. We're in a real mess at
home right now."

With some reluctance, I lent him Rp 25 and in my heart of
hearts, with the money as capital, I hoped he would be able to
set up a company that was 100 percent national.

Translated by A.L. Reber

This story is taken from Menagerie 3, printed here courtesy of
the Lontar Foundation.

Born on Sept. 22, 1921, in Padang, West Sumatra, Idrus is
regarded as one of Indonesia's best writers. He wrote several
collections focusing on simple human themes. He worked at Balai
Pustaka publishing house and was a correspondent for the
newspaper Merdeka. In 1960, he moved to Kuala Lumpur, where he
and his wife opened a publishing house and together published two
magazines. He returned to his homeland in 1965 and was later
offered a job at Monash University in Australia. He subsequently
received his master's degree and later graduated with a doctorate
at the same university. Idrus died in his birthplace in 1979.