Palace Compares BEM UI with NGO Following House Speaker Viral Meme
Translator
Editor
24 March 2023 16:09 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The meme showing House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Puan Maharani created by the University of Indonesia Student Executive Board or BEM UI makes rounds on social media. The State Palace asserted that there are many interests behind the meme which was uploaded as a form of protest against the Job Creation Law.
"The narrative is similar to that of foreign-funded NGOs, as well as anti-government groups. So what they sell in 2024 [general elections] is sold out," Faldo Maldini, special staff to the State Secretary Minister for Communications and Media, said in Jakarta on Thursday, March 23.
Faldo said that BEM UI is filled with smart students with diverse minds. Faldo invited all parties to evaluate the criticism voiced by BEM UI because the Government in Lieu of Law or Perppu on Job Creation was in fact, implemented according to prevailing principles and procedures.
"On the other hand, they are sometimes naive," said Faldo, who is also a former chairman of BEM UI.
Responding to Faldo's statement, BEM UI chairman Melki Sedek Huang challenged him to prove the allegations of foreign funding in the campaign against the Job Creation Law conducted by BEM UI.
"We clearly state that we are not funded by foreign parties and [what we do are not for] the interest of any political elite. Please prove it [the allegation] because we are ready to prove everything," Melki told Tempo on Thursday, March 23, 2023.
Melki admitted that his organization is indeed driven by the interests of the Indonesian people. To date, officials sitting in the Parliament in Senayan failed to represent people's interests.
"We haven't found any evidence related to public participation in the Job Creation Perppu. This Perppu is an unconstitutional law product made by the President himself which has zero public participation and is not in line with the constitution," Melki argued.
FAJAR PEBRIANTO | JULNIS FIRMANSYAH
Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo in Google News
