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Hundreds wait to meet Jusuf Kalla at open house event
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People stand in long queues, waiting to enter the official residence of Vice President Jusuf Kalla in Jakarta at an Idul Fitri celebration on Sunday. (JP/Moses Ompusunggu)
H
undreds of people from across Greater Jakarta flocked on Sunday to the official residence of Vice President Jusuf Kalla in Menteng, Jakarta, to attend an open house event as part of the Idul Fitri festivities.
Several of the attendees said they were very eager to meet Kalla, a seasoned business magnate and Golkar politician, even after having been trapped in a continuously jostling queue of men since 5 p.m.
"Be careful with the children!" said one in the queue. "Allahu Akbar! Please don't jostle!" said a woman, carrying her infant daughter.
At 5:30 p.m., First Lieutenant CPM (Military Police Corps) Samosir, who was deployed to secure Kalla's residence, told The Jakarta Post that there were at least 250 citizens queued outside the house waiting to meet the vice president.
Thirty-nine-year-old housewife Hartini, who hails from Plumpang in North Jakarta, said she wanted to "hold the hands of Kalla" and to convey her Idul Fitri greeting to him.
"I hope those who are in power pay more attention to people in the lower economic class," Hartini said, adding that two things the government had to focus more on were health and education.
Muhammad Dadi, 32, rode his motorcycle from his residence in Cileungsi, West Java—a 1.5-hour drive from Menteng—after hearing the news at around 12 p.m. that Kalla would host an Idul Fitri open house at 5 p.m.
"Sembako [staple food] distribution in Cileungsi is not as widespread as it is in Jakarta," said Farah Fawzia, Dadi’s wife who joined him in the trip to Kalla’s house. (tas)
