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SBY praises the late Taufiq Kiemas
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono lent his praises on Sunday to Taufiq Kiemas, the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker who passed away on Saturday
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resident Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono lent his praises on Sunday to Taufiq Kiemas, the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) speaker who passed away on Saturday.
'While carrying out his duties as a House of Representatives' member, he showed consistency, firmness and obstinacy in carrying out the political work he believed in,' Yudhoyono said during Taufiq's funeral at the Kalibata National Heroes Cemetery in South Jakarta on Sunday.
The President said the late Taufiq Kiemas was a respected political leader, who was a defender of democracy and a true patriot.
'He was also a statesman whose thinking lay beyond his personal political interests.'
Yudhoyono added that together, he as President and Taufiq as the speaker of the MPR had promoted harmony and developed a close partnership in carrying out their duties as mandated by the Constitution.
'Even when his health began to worsen, he kept on persevering to uphold the nation's four pillars: the state ideology Pancasila, the 1945 Constitution, the national motto Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity) and the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI),' said Yudhoyono, who also praised Taufiq as a faithful husband who always assisted his wife, Megawati Soekarnoputri, in performing her tasks.
Taufiq Kiemas, who died aged 70 in a hospital in Singapore following complications, was accorded a ceremonial funeral with full military honors.
Taufiq's stepson, Mohammad Rizki Pratama, said in his remarks on behalf of the family, 'We believe that in our father's heart, Pak Taufiq always wanted to uphold friendship'.
'And Bapak was a figure who always brought hope, no matter how complicated the problems that we were facing.'
A number of Cabinet ministers, government officials and regional leaders attended the funeral.
They included Communications and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring, Education and Culture Minister M.Nuh, Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, Home Minister Gamawan Fauzi and Coordinating People's Welfare Minister Agung Laksono, as well as Bank Indonesia Governor Agus Martowardojo and Attorney General Basrief Arief.
Politicians including Pramono Anung and Panda Nababan of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and Akbar Tanjung of the Golkar Party were also in attendance. (fan/ebf)
