TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search results
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search resultsNU executive board sees shake-up amid rift
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) chairman Yahya Cholil Staquf (left) and secretary-general Saifullah Yusuf (right) leaves the room on July 28, 2024, after a press briefing on the result of the organization's central board plenary meeting in Jakarta. (Antara/Aprillio Akbar)
T
he leadership of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) has seen a shake-up after secretary-general Saifullah Yusuf was transferred to a different post by chairman Yahya Cholil Staquf, whose own position remains in limbo following an internal rift.
In a meeting of the NU executive board, known as Tanfidziyah, on Friday, Yahya reshuffled Saifullah and four other executives from their positions at the board of the country’s biggest Islamic organization.
“This rotation is regulated in [NU] bylaws as the second-highest deliberative forum after the muktamar [national congress],” Yahya said after the meeting at the NU headquarters in Jakarta on Friday, Antara reported.
Yahya moved Saifullah from his position as the board's secretary-general to an executive chairman position directly under Yahya, saying it was because of Saifullah’s busy schedule as social affairs minister in President Prabowo Subianto’s administration. Saifullah has been the minister since 2024, when he served under Prabowo's predecessor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.
“Although we could coordinate virtually or through online applications, his physical absence creates many obstacles,” Yahya added, noting that Saifullah has not been physically present at board meetings for a year.
Amin Said Husni, formerly one of NU's deputy chairpersons, has now taken over Saifullah’s post. Meanwhile, Masyhuri Malik was assigned to fill the deputy post left vacant by Amin. The change of leadership also affected two other clerics: Gudfan Arif and Sumantri, who now hold an executive chairman post and a general treasurer post, respectively.
The shake-up comes amid NU’s internal rift, which stems from a meeting of its supreme council, Syuriah, on Nov. 20 that called for Yahya to step down following his invitation to a pro-Israel speaker for an internal event in August.
