Democratic Party Politician Urges Yudhoyono to 'Keep a Cool Head'
Jakarta. Democratic Party politician Ruhut Sitompul has urged party chairman Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to keep a cool head and act like a statesman following his outburst during a press conference on Tuesday (02/11).
"Mr. Yudhoyono, you can be upset, but your head should remain cool. You are a statesman," Ruhut said in statement on Wednesday.
He claimed that President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration has not done anything to damage Yudhoyono's reputation, especially related to the 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial election.
"I believe that Jokowi's administration, which I support, has not done that," Ruhut said.
Ruhut said someone in Yudhoyono's inner circle was possibly behind the former president's anger during Tuesday's press conference. These "whisperers," according to Ruhut, have been feeding Yudhoyono incorrect information on the current situation.
"Those in Mr. Yudhoyono's inner circle, please review the correct information before handing it to him. He is a statesman after all," the politician said.
Aside from Yudhoyono being fed wrong information, Ruhut also deplored the uncontrolled use of social media that easily results in conflict in Indonesia.
"It is social media, so do not be too sensitive to address this. Social media has created conflict before. So, whatever Mr. Yudhoyono said was because of social media," the former Democratic Party spokesman said.
"Everything happened because of what Buni Yani posted in social media. He should have been arrested. We should take the example of Ahok, who despite being confronted during his blusukan, remained silent," Ruhut said, referring to incumbent Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama by his nickname.
As someone close to Jokowi, Ruhut said he always tries to connect with the good issues.
"If there is a problem, we minimize it, or even eliminate it if possible," he said.
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