President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono tried to introduce to children his five predecessors at the Cakra Cendekia-1 Study House of the Infantry Strategic Reserve Command Division I headquarters, Cilondong, Depok, West Java, Sunday.

“Kids, who was the first president of Indonesia?” the president asked as he pointed to a row of pictures of presidents on the wall of the study house. The children answered together, “Soekarno…”. Then the president introduced President Soekarno as the proclamator of independence.

Then, the second president, Soeharto. SBY commented that Soeharto was the ‘builder of the nation’. Then he introduced B.J. Habibie as the third president along with his predicate. “He’s an expert on science and technology.”

For the fourth president, Abdurrahman Wahid, “He was the father of pluralism,” said the president.

As for the fifth president, Megawati Soekarnoputri. The president didn’t attach any other predicate on her except that, “She’s the daughter of the first Indonesian president, Soekarno.”

At the sixth picture, which was his own, the children immediately answered, “President Yudhoyono.”

The president then stated that all the presidents of the nation have good intentions of creating welfare for the people of Indonesia

Setelah dua album terdahulunya, Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono membuka tahun 2010 dengan mempersembahkan satu album baru bagi rakyat Indonesia.

Album berisi sembilan lagu yang diluncurkan di Taman Ismail Marzuki, Jakarta, Minggu sore, itu bertajuk Ku Yakin Sampai di Sana, yang kebetulan juga merupakan salah satu judul lagu dalam album itu.

Sebagaimana dua album terdahulunya, kali ini Yudhoyono juga menggandeng penyanyi-penyanyi populer Indonesia untuk membawakan lagu-lagunya, antara lain Vidi Adiano, Joy Tobing, Koeswoyo Junior, Rio Febrian, Elfas Singer, Tantowi Yahya, Dewi Yull, dan Iwan Abdie.

Sejumlah pemusik papan atas, antara lain Fariz RM, Pay, Irwan Simanjuntak, Alvin Lubis, Elfa Seciora, dan Yan Rusli, juga ikut menggarap album tersebut.

Adapun video klip untuk sejumlah lagu ditangani oleh beberapa kreator, seperti Rizal Mantovani, Ivan Banditto, Anggi Umbara, dan Anggie RB.

Dalam pengantar album itu, Presiden yang kebetulan tidak menghadiri acara peluncuran tersebut mengatakan bahwa melalui lagu ia mengomunikasikan suasana batinnya kepada masyarakat luas.

“Di tengah pergumulan dan perjuangan saya menjalankan amanah rakyat sebagai presiden, sesekali di kala senggang saya mengekspresikan perasaan saya ke dalam bentuk karya seni. Melalui karya-karya seni ini, saya berharap dapat mengomunikasikan suasana batin saya kepada masyarakat luas, anak-anak bangsa Indonesia,” katanya.

Menurut Yudhoyono, album yang memuat lagu-lagu dari beragam genre musik dan lirik itu merupakan benang merah yang mencerminkan suatu keyakinan, komitmen, dan keinginan mencapai sesuatu yang ideal.

Sementara itu, penyanyi Tantowi Yahya yang juga anggota DPR mengatakan bahwa ia mendengarkan lagu “Majulah Negeriku” sebanyak tiga kali sebelum diminta membawakan lagu tersebut.

“Suatu hari saya diundang oleh Pak SBY ke Cikeas. Pak SBY bilang telah membuat sebuah lagu berirama country untuk saya nyanyikan,” kata Tantowi.

Menurut presenter papan atas itu, lagu berlirik sederhana itu bagus karena seperti lagu perjuangan zaman dulu, tetapi memiliki konteks kekinian.

Berbeda dengan Tantowi, Koeswoyo Junior mengaku diundang ke Istana Cipanas pada 2008 sebelum diminta membawakan lagu “Budi Temanku” dan “Liburan Sekolah”.

David, vokalis Koeswoyo Junior, mengatakan, sekalipun berlirik sederhana, kedua lagu itu memiliki makna filosofis.
“Budi Temanku” mengingatkan seseorang bahwa kesuksesan juga dapat diraih di desa, sedangkan “Liburan Sekolah” mengingatkan seseorang untuk tidak melupakan pendidikan.

“Kedua lagu itu semula beat dan temponya agak lambat, seperti lagu-lagu zaman dulu. Namun kita ubah lebih ngebeat dengan tempo agak cepat,” tutur David.

Fariz RM yang sebelumnya terlibat dalam penyusunan urutan lagu dalam album kedua Yudhoyono, Evolusi (2009), mengatakan bahwa ia secara khusus memasukkan unsur saluang dari Sumatera Barat, gitar khas Kalimantan, serta kolintang dan tifa dari Minahasa dan Irian untuk mewakili keindonesiaan dalam lagu “Jiwaku Terang di Malam Itu”.

Lagu “Jiwaku Terang di Malam Itu” yang dibawakan penyanyi pria terbaik versi MTV Awards 2009 Vidi Aldiano diciptakan oleh Yudhoyono saat berada di Lima, Peru, pada 24 November 2008.

Yudhoyono sebelumnya telah meluncurkan Rinduku Padamu pada Oktober 2007 dan Evolusi pada Januari 2009.

Ku Yakin Sampai di Sana berisi sembilan lagu, yaitu “Jiwaku Terang di Malam Itu”, “Adakah”, “Budi Temanku”, “Kuyakin Sampai di Sana”, “Untukmu Anak Manis”, “Liburan Sekolah”, “Longing My Love”, “Save Our Planet”, dan “Majulah Negeriku”.

Source : here

Media experts on Monday said the international coverage of the conflict involving the nation’s antigraft and law enforcement agencies showed that the rest of the world saw the issue as a major stumbling block for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s new administration.

Deddy Mulyana, a mass communications expert from Bandung’s Padjadjaran University, said on Monday that the foreign media’s reports on the battle between the Corruption Eradication Commission ( KPK ), the National Police and the Attorney General’s Office portrayed it as a potential crisis for the government.

“This issue has caught their attention, as they see it has the potential to grow into a bigger issue that may trouble the government,” he said.

In a report on Thursday, the London-based The Economist newsmagazine said the conflict was the first crisis to confront Yudhoyono sby , who usually received positive coverage in the foreign media.

Other respected foreign media organizations, such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, BBC and Al Jazeera have also published reports on the scandal. They, too, suggested that the president was facing a significant challenge as he began his second term in office.

Deddy said Indonesia had received positive coverage for months after managing to emerge from the global crisis relatively unscathed, due partly to the belief that the government had been doing its best to fight corruption korupsi .

“The president must be able to ensure that the conflict will not grow any bigger as it will certainly reduce foreign investors’ trust in the country,” he said.

Dedy Nur Hidayat, a political communications expert from the University of Indonesia, agreed, saying the president needed to act to contain the conflict.

“This is certainly a challenge for him. The president needs to be decisive in ending this conflict,” he said.

“Media, including the foreign media, would not be pleased with just mere statements.”

Yudhoyono’s name has been dragged into the ongoing feud involving the three institutions, which many critics have said is a concerted effort to weaken the antigraft commission. Yudhoyono was mentioned several times in wiretapped conversations linked to the case surrounding KPK deputies Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra M Hamzah.

Played last week at the Constitutional Court, the recordings implicated former National Police Chief Detective Comr. Gen. Susno Duadji and former Deputy Attorney General Abdul Hakim Ritonga in an alleged plot to frame Bibit and Chandra for bribery.

Massive public demonstrations in support of the KPK forced the president to establish a fact-finding team to investigate the case.

Meanwhile, Susno and Ritonga announced their resignations last week.

There I was watching the news in Metro TV in the morning before I went to my office. I saw the editorial broadcast and it was discussing the ministry audition in Cikeas held by the upcoming President of Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

The editorial elaborated that this audition became a part of the reality show which offers drama to lure mass media attention. The invitation was so personal that this audition is the portal of feudalism scheme of the president.

They are worried that the president will choose the ministry according to his favor instead of the qualification of the person itself. Furthermore, the mass media attention makes the candidate seems very thirsty for a position in the ministry.

First of all, this is just a delsuional rambling with no proof whatsoever. Bringing back feudalism? Isn’t that why the mass media is there? To report to the citizen of how the ministry selection process is taking place. If anything, this event is an attempt of bringing transparency into the democracy process. With mass media attention peering to this process, a personal favorization has a little chance of happening since over 200 million Indonesian people are watching him. I guess the guy in the narration prefers a secret audition where secret dirty arrangement won’t be known.

I guess this is only a pathetic attempt by a certain person to tackle down the President. This is just a stupid prejudice bias which has no proof whatsoever.

News Source: http://www.metrotvnews.com/index.php/metromain/newsprograms/2009/10/19/3600/121/Reality-Show-Seleksi-Menteri

Today, at around 10:00 AM morning, Indonesian special force (Densus 88) had successfully neutralized the suspected leader of terrorist attacks in Bali, Australia embassy, and J.W. Marriot & Ritz Carlton hotel in Temanggung, Central Java, Indonesia.

Named Noordin M. Top, this person was shot to death by the officer while he was covering in a civillian resident. He was strapped by bomb when he was found dead in the toilet of the house. Noordin M. Top is allegedly a terrorist who claimed to be one of the members of an Islamic organization. He is from Malaysia and he masterminded all the bombing incident which took place in Indonesia territory.

Another information is that the officers also found 600 kilos of explosives ingridient in Bekasi and 100 kilos of them were going to be transported to Cikeas, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s resident, by an L300 vehicle.

Five suspects were arrested during the operation and three were killed in a gunshot battle. Previously, the President warned the citizen of Indonesia that this terrorist is still at large and is aiming for the President’s life. A couple of photo evidence were also circulated by the government that there is a group of terrorists that are stationed in Indonesia.

The prediction went true and who would’ve thought that it is the same man who have blasted Bali in 2002. Unfortunately, the police force were unable to catch Noordin M. Top alive to spill out more information about the terrorist activity and it seems that this incident has upgraded from a mere religious cause to a possibility of a political and economy cause. All we can do is hope that the death of the leader of 4 bombings incident in Indonesia is the final horror that we have to go through.

Senin, 3 Agustus 2009 | 11:35 WIB
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com — Departemen Pendidikan Nasional (Depdiknas) pada RAPBN 2010 memperoleh alokasi anggaran terbesar yang mencapai Rp 51,8 triliun.

“Anggaran besar untuk Departemen Pendidikan Nasional tersebut untuk menuntaskan pelaksanaan program wajib belajar pendidikan dasar sembilan tahun, pemerataan, dan perluasan akses pendidikan, serta peningkatan mutu, relevansi, dan daya saing pendidikan,” kata Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono pada Pidato Pengantar RAPBN 2010 dan Nota Keuangan di depan Rapat Paripurna Luar Biasa DPR-RI, di Gedung MPR/DPR, Jakarta, Senin (3/8).

Pada Rencana Kerja Pemerintah (RKP) 2010, pemerintah mengalokasikan anggaran belanja untuk seluruh kementerian/lembaga mencapai Rp 327,6 triliun, meningkat Rp 10,6 triliun dibanding RAPBN tahun 2009 lalu.
Menurut Kepala Negara, dengan anggaran pendidikan yang mencapai 20 persen dari APBN itu diharapkan dapat menaikkan kesejahteraan guru, meningkatkan mutu pendidikan guna membangun keunggulan dan daya saing bangsa di abad 21.

Diungkapkan oleh Presiden, lembaga lainnya yang juga memperoleh anggaran yang cukup besar yaitu Departemen Pertahanan sebesar Rp 40,7 triliun dan Departemen Pekerjaan Umum Rp 34,3 triliun. Sementara itu, Departemen Agama memperoleh Rp 26,0 triliun, Kepolisian Negara Republik Indonesia sebesar Rp 25,8 triliun, Departemen Kesehatan sebesar Rp 20,8 triliun, dan Departemen Perhubungan sebesar Rp 16,0 triliun.
Sumber berita : kompas.com

Presidential national election is up ahead on July 8th 2009, folks. However, I’ve heard many from my colleagues and friends that they are not going to elect anyone as their next leader of Indonesia or in our term, they are a ‘Golput’. Honestly, this comment is quite a mind-boggling one for those who live in Indonesia as a citizen of Indonesia.

I understand that vote is a right not a must, but think about it this way, if all people are thinking the same as what you thought, then who will lead our country? Won’t the condition be worse than actually vote a crap candidate? I’ve watched one of Michael Moore film which he intentionally register a ficcus tree as a representative for a certain region. Surprisingly, the ficcus tree won the election cause most people just fade up with the dimwitting quality of their representatives.

Well, I do appreciate Michael Moore approach of justice and revealing the corruption that is in the government entity, but registering a ficcus tree as a symbol of protest is not the answer to a better solution. And so as being a Golput. You aren’t doing any favor to the advancement of Indonesia nor finishing Indonesia problems. All you do is you ran away and be quiet, taking no action whatsoever which may lead to worse condition.

If you really do love this nation and want it to thrive, you’ll search for a better candidate, get to know him and let it known to other friends who don’t know. Educate them that eventhough vote is a right, it is a very critical issue since Indonesia’s future is on the hand of the next leader and without a leader, this nation will fall apart. Whether or not the candidate is dislikeable to your vision, just pick the candidate that is less worse than the others. It is then the responsibility of the people to observe the government work not to derail from what he has promised.

I also heard from one source that direct voting is a sense of degrading in democracy practice since nobody is adopting this practice anymore. They say that representative vote is the best practice to a democratic country, just like in the United States. Well, I say “screw you”. Even the citizen in the United States are shouting “One man, one voice” since representative vote is injustice which a person can have different voting power in practice. Our nation has the best democracy practice and it is an advancement. It has achieved the pinnacle of democracy and don’t dare to lead us the new order again.

Anyway, I declared Golput is a coward act and I’m sick of cowards, always blabbering of how unsatisfying things are without ever do anything to make the nation better. They are just a bunch of ignorant who can’t get the picture of how crucial democracy practice is. Make this year a different one guys, stop being a Golput now!

OK, this post is the continuation of the previous post “The President National Election Campaign Conclusion“. In that post, I question Mr. JK – Wiranto next move of countering the one cycle of election that SBY – Boediono campaign group suggested which could save 3 trillion rupiahs.

Turns out, Jusuf Kalla answered my question on a debate programme in a private TV network. He brilliantly launched a rebuttal, saying that “Sure it will save us 3 trillion rupiahs to held a one cycle presidential election. Maybe we could save 25 trillion rupiahs by not having an election at all?”. My reaction was an astonishing grin and a slap on my head “Damn, he’s cool!”. I never had in my mind that the answer that JK uttered is actually a silencer debate.

JK also commented “So, you value the nation democracy based on monetary value, Sir?”. Damn, another silencer which I’m pretty sure that is the right and killer answer. To be honest, this man is dangerously smart, guys. I now know why I pick him as the next leader and now I’m convinced that he will be a great leader.

So, what did Mr. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono answered? He answered, “That campaign was not from me. It was illegal”. That answer was a jaw-breaking on, honestly. A candidate of president is not responsible of the publicity that he has in the mass media? So I guess, when a SBY fan broadcast a mockery of other candidates in a TV network, you are not going to stop him? Whether or not that campaign is from you, the people only know that info is from you. And to say that campaign is illegal just when the debate starts is just a repulsive action.

It means that all that time, you are agreeing with the particular campaign that is broadcasted in the TV. Or do you never watch television Mr. SBY?

Anyway, thank Mr. JK for answering my doubt and again, best wishes for the presidential national election.

With the presidential national election coming up on July 8th 2009, I got to say that it’s been a roller coaster ride for me in deciding who I will choose as the next president and vice president for 2009-2014 period.

Initially, my choice was Jusuf Kalla – Wiranto. I’ve already discussed why I choose them as the next leader of Indonesia in the previous post and I’m like “That’s it, I’m going to choose them on July 8th”.

However, up until this day, I’m a little bit repulse by the campaign strategy that JK – Wiranto had. It seems that they employ negative campaign against other candidates, especially SBY – Boediono. Well, these negative campaigns are not publicised in the mass media and I’ve only seen them on the streets which probably the people who erect that banner might’ve not come from the official campaign party. Also to be fair, other candidates were also launching their own negative campaign, especially Megawati – Prabowo, who publicised it to the TV, saying that we can’t survive if we elect the same new government as of now.

However, JK – Wiranto should know that they are an underdog now and it will do them no benefit to launch negative campaigns against other candidates. Organize your publicity, Sir, because you need to gain as much sympathy as you can gain. You already hook me up with Youth Loan for Entrepreneurship plan, now it’s time to let people know that you are a humble person.

JK – Wiranto, by far you are the loudest candidate which call for economic market improvement for countering the next year crisis, which in fact a good solution for this crisis. However, you need to gain publicity as fast as you can. Stating a briliant plan for your term of presidency is not enough to get you elected.
You should’ve gone for trivial matters to gain good impression swiftly. Finishing the Lapindo mud victims complains and demands would be a start, I wonder how you skipped that?

Mr. Jk – Wiranto, I really am supporting for you to be the next leader of Indonesia, but it seems SBY – Boediono understood how to get attention quickly. Remember their campaign of employing only one cycle of election? That is a brilliant way to say that there is no need to waste budget on two times election and honestly, I was amazed that SBY – Boediono had one common idea as I do. So, what are you going to do now Mr. JK – Wiranto? Best wishes for the presidential national election.

Serangan calon presiden Jusuf Kalla terhadap Boediono, yang menjadi calon pendamping Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono sebagai wakil presiden, berlanjut. Setelah menyoal proyek listrik 10 ribu megawatt, kini Kalla menyerang pesaingnya itu dengan menyebut calon dari Partai Demokrat tersebut lebih berpihak kepada kapitalis ketimbang kepada rakyat.

“Bukan masalah soal marah-tidak marah. Ini soal ideologi bahwa ada pihak yang tidak mau menjamin urusan rakyat kecil tapi mau menjamin kapitalis besar-besaran,” kata Kalla dalam perjalanan dengan pesawat Fokker 100 milik Pelita Air dari Ternate ke Ambon kemarin. Ia dalam lawatan ke di Indonesia timur untuk berkampanye.

Kalla menuding Boediono, yang pada 2007 menjadi Menteri Koordinator Perekonomian, tidak mau meneken persetujuan penjaminan oleh pemerintah dalam proyek listrik 10 ribu megawatt seperti diminta konsorsium bank Cina yang akan menyediakan dana. Tapi, ketika menjadi Gubernur Bank Indonesia, ia termasuk yang meminta pemerintah memberikan penjaminan perbankan (blanket guarantee).

Saat itu Kalla mengaku pernah tiga kali didatangi Dewan Gubernur Bank Indonesia, termasuk Boediono, soal penjaminan bank itu. “Kata Boediono, itu atas perintah Presi den SBY. Tapi saya tetap tak mau jamin,” katanya. “Coba kalau saat itu kita setujui, pasti sudah terjadi BLBI (Bantuan Likuiditas Bank Indonesia) jilid II. Bisa sampai 200 triliun kerugiannya.”

Masalah penjaminan bank ini sempat mencuat di awal krisis global tahun lalu. Ketika itu Kadin, Menteri Keuangan, dan Bank Indonesia mengusulkan agar pemerintah memberikan blanket guarantee untuk mencegah larinya modal.

Kalla mengatakan, persoalan ini harus diungkapkan kepada masyarakat karena menyangkut prinsip pemikiran ekonomi bangsa. “Ini persoalan prinsip berpikir. Kalau untuk kepentingan rakyat, tak mau jamin Listrik ini untuk kepentingan rakyat Tapi kalau untuk kepentingan kapitalisme besar, selalu dijamin,” katanya.

Sebelumnya, ketika memimpin rapat soal listrik di kantor Gubernur Sulawesi Tengah di Kendari, Kalla juga mengungkit soal hambatan dari sejumlah menteri terhadap usulannya mengenai pembangunan pembangkit berkekuatan 10 ribu megawatt untuk mengurangi beban subsidi yang setahun mencapai Rp 100 triliun.

“Segala risiko di tangan saya, jangan takut. Baru kemudian teman-teman mau. Bagaimana mungkin bisa kalau lamban berpikir Tapi bosnya Boediono juga tidak mau teken,” ujarnya.

Serangan terhadap pasangan Yudhoyono Boediono sempat ditanggapi calon presiden incumbent, yang menilai Kalla tidak etis mengemukakan soal penolakan Boediono itu. “Masalah internal kabinet dibawa ke sana-sini,” kata Yudhoyono di Balikpapan, Minggu lalu.

Yudhoyono membantah anggapan bahwa Boediono sengaja menghambat proyek listrik itu. “Kami minta Pak Boediono mengkaji kembali pemberian jaminan proyek ini. Akhirnya keputusan saya untuk menyetujui pemberian jaminan penuh,” ujarnya pekan lalu.

Source : Tempointerkatif

Observing his duty as the president of Indonesia in the last five years duty period has kept me thinking of how alike this person against the second president of Indonesia. The name is Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, a military-background person which Indonesian people know him better by his initial, SBY. Don’t get me wrong here, I don’t compare SBY against Soeharto in the dictatorship or military background. Conversely, I compare SBY against Soeharto in one factor that suits them most, charisma.

In Soeharto’s duty period as the president of Indonesia, he has successfully build a strong impression in the eyes of Indonesian people. Soeharto’s achievements are without a doubt impressive in his period of duty. He successfully stopped the rebellion army of communist party and build a strong military force. The proof of strong military force in Indonesia during his duty period can be proven in the Indonesia’s participation of UN liberation Army by the name of “Pasukan Garuda”. Indonesia’s special force called “Kopassus” achieved the second best military quality in the world (The number one was the Israeli troops, btw). Not only that, Soeharto also able to improve education level in Indonesia, resulting in many neighbouring country to come learn to Indonesia. Economic was quite stable although many monopoly existed.

However, Soeharto was notorious for his dictatorship. Press was often pressured by the government during his period as the president and often shuted off if the press make a critic against the government. Gamble was legalized and corruption was everywhere. The nation started to collapse as he is convicted of embezzlement. There, the nation went to chaos, the nation demands that Soeharto should resign from his presidency. There, Soeharto agreed to resigned and put to trial by the Constitution. How did it went? He was never convicted until the death came to himself. Not even a person could prosecute him for his wrongful doing and how the nation reacts? We stood mute, releasing Soeharto’s sins down to his grave. Even some of us were praising him for his innocence.

Then, after a long government transition with ballistic impact on the nation, leading the nation to lost Timor Timur as one of the islands that belong to Indonesia and rebellion army rising in Aceh and Papua, came along Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono as the hero who peace the nation. His action was backed up by God which in the amidst of Aceh’s fight for independent, a tsunami struck Aceh and the rebellion army was literally wiped out. There, peace was made and the nation was back to normal. Papua’s rebellion army was forced to retreat and ceased out. There, the name of SBY rose to the surface. Everyone was saluting him for his leadership. And the situation was advantageous for SBY. In his period, a bunch of disasters struck the nation, this time it’s earthquake and volcano eruption.

There, SBY got the momentum to further expand his charisma by reacting fast in helping the earthquake victims. He also profoundedly shout that it is our responsibility to help the victim of the earthquake, not the foreigners who came in the aid to help the victims. SBY also liked for his disciplinary traits in the governmental meeting. All representatives that are found dozing off during the meeting are being yelled by SBY. Of course, his action brings further salutation from the nation which no president in Indonesia has ever done. SBY also a quite hot-tempered guy and he can’t handle critic too well. It is proven that whichever media criticizing the government  gets a quite pressure from him (Remember Republik Mimpi, guys?). Not only that, the Australian media that critized him has put SBY to a furious state and stating that Australia commit a treacherous act against Indonesia.

Lastly, SBY is quite loud in shutting down the media which broadcast sensitive issue such as the communist party. The unprovened film entitled Lastri which depicted the life of a woman in a communist party was never made it to the screen since it is a sensitive topic. Not only that, homosexuality and religion-debunking film are definitely will go to the trash by the censorship without further much a do. Now, the question leaves us to “Will we get another dictator in our nation again?”