Our new president, Joko Widodo, got high marks from most spectators for the speech he gave after his inauguration. But one lawmaker harshly criticized President Jokowi’s speech for reasons that appear ridiculous at best.
As reported in the Jakarta Globe, Golkar member Bambang Soesatyo said Jokowi’s use of the word “merdeka,” which means “freedom,” shows that Jokowi puts his party, PDI-P before the people, as the word “merdeka” is often used by the party.
More ridiculously, Bambang said that Jokowi’s use of Merdeka could embolden Papuan separatists.
“I don’t know who he meant the remark for,” Bambang said, as quoted by the Jakarta Globe. “There were delegates from Papua; if it was indeed intended to them, it could mean that he ordered Papua to be independent.”
PDI-P legislator Aria Bima fired back, saying Bambang’s accusation was ridiculous as merdeka was a commonly used word that didn’t belong to any one party or group.
“A presidential decree issued in 1947 declared that merdeka was a national salute,” Aria said. “It’s a remark of national fight. It doesn’t belong to the PDI-P.”
Source: The Jakarta Globe
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