War on jealousy

The Jakarta Post , Jakarta | Tue, 02/13/2007 5:13 PM | Opinion

I refer to The Jakarta Post editorial on Feb. 2 titled SBY's war on corruption, especially the part that said: ""There has been significant progress in the past two years in the war against corruption.""

That is true. In fact there is already a sense of fear among government officials and civil servants to ask for extra money, popularly known as uang rokok (cigarette money), for their services to the public.

The President also told Indonesians, ""I know how difficult your life is,"" which means the President is aware of the problems confronting the nation and he is working day and night to solve them.

We all know that the state of Indonesia in 1998 after Soeharto stepped down was like a patient in the intensive care unit, struggling for life. Doctors have to handle such a patient cautiously, otherwise the patient may die. Ex-presidents BJ Habibie, Abdurrahman Wahid and Megawati Soekarnoputri saved the republic from collapse as a unitary state, stretching from Sabang to Merauke.

The demonstration staged by activist Hariman Siregar and friends on Jan. 15 asking people to withdraw the mandate given to President Yudhoyono was not a correct step in terms of democratic norms. It can be termed an act of jealousy, which is a manifestation of failure.

President Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla were elected directly by the people in 2004, with the support of 69 million voters, and we have to respect that. They were elected to serve until 2009. It's our moral duty to support the legitimate government and allow them to work.

We have declared a war on terror, corruption and poverty. Now let us declare a war on jealousy. United we stand and divided we will surely fall.

MM SINGH
Jakarta

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