Letter: Over-rated SBY

I have always believed President SBY was over-rated. If you set yourself up too high, the gap between myth and reality is too great, so when you fall, you fall badly.

The other thing is the expectations of the people. If the people set their expectations too high, again the gap between myth and reality is great and will take a great fall.

Did SBY set his expectations too high, or did the people set their expectations too high?

Is this his fault for misleading the people, or the peoples fault because the people misled themselves?

On the issue of corruption, around which most dissatisfaction is centered and which seems to be a common culture in Indonesia. All government is the sum of the people of which the state is comprised.

Leaders do not reform societies, people reform themselves. If a society is corrupt, do not change the administration, first change the moral state of the people of which the state is comprised.

The great lesson of Moses, is when faced with a corrupt administration he did not change the government. Instead he re-engineered the moral state of the people from the base up. The people had to morally reform (purify) themselves in God before they were worthy (or even able) to enter the Promised Land and enjoy good governance.

Perhaps the world needs to stop looking for great leaders (who always have feet of clay) and instead look for an improved people, as the only foundation for good government.

That, I believe, applies to the world as a whole, not just to Indonesia.

Ken Maynard
Auckland