Islamic School against Rizieq Shihab's Call for People Power

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Sunan Kalijaga Islamic Boarding School located in Gemilang, Bantul rejected the call for people power echoed by Rizieq Shihab. The school committee Beny Susanto lamented the declaration voiced by the Islamic Defender Front (FPI) leader who considered there was massive, systematic, structured fraud during the Presidential Election on April 17, 2019.

"He [Rizieq Shihab] calls for mass mobilization, urges the Election Commission [KPU] to disqualify Joko Widodo-KH Ma’ruf Amin. This broadcast is inappropriate and must be rejected, let's shun it because it contains provocation and defamation that potentially damage the conducive life of the nation and the country," Beny said on Thursday, May 2, 2019.

According to Beny, election participants who felt their rights were taken or there was massive, systematic, structured election fraud occurred must file a suit to the Constitution Court. "Not [based on] an individual, group, or party opinion," he added.

The Islamic institution deemed there was no authoritative, legal winner yet in the 2019 presidential election. This standing position, Beny added, was necessary because the vote-counting process was carried out by the KPU transparently, accountable, and it was also correctable.

The real count from the lower tier in the polling stations until the higher tier in the central KPU was monitored by witnesses from each candidate campaign team, Election Supervisory Board (Bawaslu), independent supervisor, mass media, and international supervisor.

He appealed to all parties, each candidate pair, campaign team, political party leaders, and supporters to maintain the conducive situation, harmony, brotherhood, and national unity. "Avoid defamation, hoax, provocation, and hate speech that can harm the harmony and cohesion of all communities and our beloved nation, Indonesia Raya," Beny underlined.

MUH SYAIFULLAH