TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Vice President Ma'ruf Amin called on students to participate in combating ideas or ideologies that could destruct Indonesia, including radicalism. He noted that this was in line with the spirit raised by Hasyim Ashari, the founder of Nahdlatul Ulama or NU, the country’s largest Islamic organization.

The VP or known as Abah recalled that Hasyim Ashari encouraged students to fight against colonialism in the past. So, students must be in the front line fighting for the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia.

“Today, our challenge is to fight against a group of people who want to destroy this country, such as separatists, radicals, terrorists,” said Ma'ruf during Festival Santri (Islamic Students Festival) in Surabaya, East Java, Sunday, October 27.

He explained that throughout the history of Islamic students or santri in Indonesia, the struggle to defend Indonesia had ingrained in them.

For instance, a song entitled Syubbanul Wathon (Love of the Homeland) had a lyric 'siapa yang datang mengacau, akan binasa karena akan berhadapan oleh santri-santri NU' means that those coming to create trouble will perish as they face NU students.

Moreover, amid the rapid technology development, the VP reminded all students to be able to adapt to the dynamic situation in a bid to acknowledge the effective ways to protect Indonesia.

“Apart from having high spirits, students in today’s era, millennial students must also acquire enough science and knowledge following challenges to be faced,” Ma'ruf Amin concluded.

EGI ADYATAMA