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My neighbor, the vice president: Stories from Ma'ruf Amin's friends at home
Ma'ruf Amin's neighbors affectionately call the 76-year-old cleric Abah (father in the Jakarta dialect), instead of kyai (Muslim cleric).
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Friendly neighborhood: A congratulatory wreath is placed in front of the house of vice president-elect Ma’ruf Amin at Jl. Lorong 27, Koja, North Jakarta, on Wednesday. The chairman of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) used to live in the area before moving to Menteng after he was picked as the running mate of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo. (JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
M
uallim Makhraj beamed with pride upon hearing the official announcement that Ma’ruf Amin, the man he called his best friend and spiritual guru, would be the republic’s next vice president.
Their friendship began in 1971 when Muallim married a woman who happened to live in a house opposite to Ma’ruf’s in Koja, North Jakarta. Locals know that Ma’ruf only has three friends in the neighborhood — Muallim, Ahmad Barawi and neighborhood unit (RT) head Malawi Makhraj.
Along with his three friends, he used to go for a regular morning jog until he entered the presidential race pairing up with Joko “Jokowi” Widodo. His neighbors affectionately call the 76-year-old cleric Abah (father in the Jakarta dialect), instead of kyai (Muslim cleric).
“Abah loves sports. We would always chat along the track. He has a good sense of humor,” said Muallim.
He recalled that Ma’ruf, who will retain his job as chairman of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) until his inauguration in October, would sometimes ask him for a ride to his office and to events outside Jakarta. Muallim said he would miss such light moments together once Ma’ruf became vice president.
“Abah said he was already too old to drive. He recently moved to Menteng [an elite residential area in Central Jakarta]. Now I hang out at home alone,” he said, laughing.
After being chosen as a vice presidential candidate, Ma’aruf moved to a house on Jl. Situbondo, Menteng, Central Jakarta. However, he cast his vote in his old neighborhood in Koja.
