Ahmad Bil Wahid, Jakarta – The Alumni 212 held a commemoration of the 411 Action at the Al-Azhar Mosque in South Jakarta. Newly elected Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan was also invited but did not attend.
Lawyer and Presidium Alumni 212 advisor Eggi Sudjana said he was offended by Baswedan’s failure to attend the commemoration and regrets that he did not accept their invitation.
“If you say disappointed, defiantly. Our disappointment is, why didn’t (Anies – Ed) not prioritise [the event]. He doesn’t have any activities in the early morning. Where are the office related activities in the context of Jakarta’s work”, Sudjana said when speaking to journalists at the Al-Azhar Mosque on Saturday November 4.
“What was the reason for not coming, [he] didn’t let us know”, he added.
Sudjana then alluded to Baswedan’s behaviour by quoting the Indonesian proverb, “Like a peanut that has forgotten its shell”. According to Sudjana, Baswedan should be careful lest the 212 Action alumni come to see him as just using them during his Jakarta gubernatorial election campaign.
“Do not let it be that the when the Islamic community who sincerely supported him need his presence, he does not come. It means he was just using us”, said Sudjana.
“If that comes to pass, Anies was my junior in the HMI (Muslim Students Association – Ed), so I warn him as a senior, the peanut shouldn’t forget its shell. Truly commit to the religious community, because only the religious community can help, the [political] parties can’t”, he added. (hri/tor)
Notes
1. The Presidium 212 were the organisers of the so-call Defend Islam actions which succeeded in mobilising massive protests against former Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama in November and December last year which eventually led to him being jailed on trumped up blasphemy charges and loosing the election to the Prabowo Subianto backed Anies Baswedan-Sandiaga Uno ticket.
2. The proverb “Don’t be like the peanut that forgot its shell” generally describes people who forget about their hometowns or where they actually came from.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was Kecewa Anies Absen Peringatan 411, Eggi: Jangan Kacang Lupa Kulit.]
