TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Leader of the Islam Defenders Front (FPI), Rizieq Shihab openly accuses the Indonesian government of dishonesty about his current condition that has left him clutched in Saudi Arabia.

In a prerecorded video played in the 212 reunion rally today, Rizieq claims the government is intentionally picturing the situation as if he never asked for the government’s help to travel back home.

He asserts he had contacted the Indonesian embassy for Saudi Arabia in Riyadh not long after he received the travel notice barring him to travel overseas.

“The Indonesian Ambassador in Riyadh had even sent an official attache. The head of the national intelligence agency (BIN) post to my home in the holy city of Mecca,” said Rizieq Shihab in the video shown today on Monday, November 2.

He then recalled the meeting between himself and the Embassy’s attache to solve his visa issue. Rizieq also claims to have personally phone-called the Indonesian Ambassador which, according to him, is a stark contrast to the statements by Mahfud MD, Coordinating Minister of Politics, Law, and Human Rights.

The coordinating minister recently issued a statement suggesting that Rizieq had not sought the government’s assistance. During the same public announcement, Mahfud also denied Rizieq Shihab’s allegation suggesting that the Indonesian government has requested Saudi Arabia’s government to hold Rizieq in the country.

JULI HANTORO