In the history of Indonesian politics, the name Masyumi Party (Majelis Syuro Muslimin Indonesia) was once a significant force, succeeding in occupying second place in the 1955 election. This is the Masyumi spirit, said the General Chairman of the Ummat Party DPP, Dr. ing. H. Ridho Rahmadi, SKom., MSc., who is trying to be promoted in the party he now leads. The Ummat Party will be a forum for all groups who have the same goals. Diversity of origin will become a mosaic in order to uphold justice and fight injustice.

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As someone who is trusted to be the first General Chairman of the Ummat Party DPP, the task carried out by Ridho Rahmadi is not easy. At a relatively young age he had to lead a political party that was founded by one of Indonesia's reform figures; Prof. Dr. HM. Amien Rais, M.A. PhD who holds the position of founder and General Chairman of the Syuro Council of the Ummat Party.

The first minor voice that emerged after Ridho Rahmadi was appointed as General Chairman was accusations about political dynasties. The problem is that Ridho is none other than the son-in-law of Amien Rais. “The minor voice did appear after I was elected as General Chair. However, the reason for my election was not because I am Mr. Amien Rais' son-in-law. But more for reasons of meritocracy. And I will prove that I am capable and have the capacity to lead," said the husband of Tasniem Fauzia Rais.

Ridho, who comes from an academic environment, had no idea that he would get the position of General Chair. As an IT lecturer at the Indonesian Islamic University (UII) Yogyakarta, he has been involved since the beginning of the Umat Party, but his contribution is in accordance with his capacity and scientific field.

In the midst of the many existing political parties and more specifically parties labeled as Islamic, Ridho explained that they were trying to offer something different. "The differentiation of the Ummat Party with other parties that label themselves as Islamic parties is that we do not eliminate the original identity of people who have joined Islamic mass organizations before. Like the spirit of the Masyumi Party in the 1950s. Everyone can enter by bringing their respective flags. So we will accommodate the diversity that exists," said Ridho Rahmadi who raised the issue of digitalization and digital sovereignty as an issue to attract millennials and young people. This is an excerpt from the complete interview with Edy Suherli, Irfan Medianto, and Dandy Januar when he visited the VOI office not long ago.

What is the vision and mission of the Ummat Party on the political stage of this country?

The Ummat Party is a party based on Islam rahmatan lil alamin. Inclusive Islam, so it's not only those who are Muslim who are involved, there are also our non-Muslim brothers and sisters; Christians, Hindus, and Buddhists are also administrators. In the eastern parts of Indonesia, on average, local people and non-Muslims become administrators.

Our big goal is to uphold justice and fight injustice. Explicitly this is in the Preamble of the AD/ART of the Ummat Party. Justice in the sense of multi-dimensional in the fields of economics, politics, and so forth. We from the Ummat Party are elements of the nation's children and together with other children of the nation are obliged to uphold justice and fight injustice. Why do we have to be together, because there's no way we can do it alone. That was the spirit of Mr. Amien Rais, MS Kaban, Ustad Sambo, and other figures when they founded the Ummat Party. Now they are included in the Syuro Institute of the Umma Party.

What did the Ummat Party do to realize this big goal?

We are formulating a roadmap to make it happen, what is in sight is the 2024 election. In the next election, we will see that many young people will be involved. The millennial figure is close to 60 percent of prospective voters. The approaches and ideas that we disseminate also adjust to the majority of prospective voters. They have not been approached much and some have an apolitical attitude. We also work on those who already have political preferences, usually for Mr. Amien Rais loyalists.

How do you explain to the public that the Ummat Party was born because of the dissatisfaction of Mr. Amien Rais, who previously declared PAN and then left, and now founded the Ummat Party?

If I borrow Mr. Gatot Nurmantyo's term when he came to an event held by the Ummat party. The Ummat Party is a correction of the previous party. So we learn from the past that experienced regression, we fix it. The Ummat Party is a cadre party, it takes time to get there. We are looking for the point of contact, between friends who have idealistic experience and pragmatic experience. So it must be balanced. If we are too idealistic we won't move. If you are too pragmatic you can get stuck in the same mistake as the previous one. We fix the previous ones and don't repeat the mistakes that have been made in the spirit of renewal.

What made you accept the mandate as General Chairman of the Ummat Party?

When approaching the declaration of the Ummat Party, my name had not been circulated as a candidate for General Chair. I'm an IT lecturer, I help in parties according to my field; IT. I, along with my undergraduate and graduate students, helped build the system, for example, to chat so that it doesn't go to other people's servers but to our server. For what I did in the Ummat Party.

Several names have appeared as candidates for chairmanship. However, the person concerned did not dare yet. Finally, during the meeting of the founders, I attended but not in front because I was part of IT. At that time, one of the members of the syuro assembly, not Mr. Amien Rais. He proposed my name as a candidate for Chairman. Then the other meeting participants responded. Because everyone had responded, my name was handed over to Mr. Amien. At that time, Mr. Amien said, if you reach an agreement, then he said Bismillah.

What is your main consideration in accepting the challenge of becoming General Chairman of the Ummat Party?

Even though I'm an IT lecturer, when I saw the state of our country when I was asked to lead the Ummat Party, and until now, frankly there is a feeling of excitement. I really often accompanied Mr. Amien, especially when he was fighting for MK in 2019. I was the team that prepared the data. So it's more to a call, this is a duty, dare or not. Frankly, I was surprised that my name was called, I was surprised that two days had not disappeared. I need time to digest this challenge. So far it was just anxiety now is the chance to answer it all. So it's not for bravado, right? I received the summons through a more systematic route through political parties. Yes, I say Bismillah. So I lived my destiny.

Since you are married to Amien Rais' daughter, there must be minor voices who accuse this of continuing a political dynasty, how do you respond?

There will definitely be such a tone of voice, but I believe my appointment as general chairman is more for meritocratic reasons. In the future, I will prove that the choice of me as chairman was not wrong. Let time explain later. The problem is if the appointment is purely based on lineage or closeness. So appointments without consideration of capacity and capability, just fall into the category of negative dynasty.

How is the Ummat Party preparing to face the legislative and presidential elections in 2024, what is the target of gaining a large number of votes and how many legislative members at the central and regional levels can it achieve?

We are physically and mentally prepared to face the 2024 election, before finally being declared passed by the KPU we must fight and sue first. After that, we consolidated at the national and regional levels almost every day. As a new party, we want to be known with different ideas. That's what we emphasize.

What new ideas do you want to offer to the public?

One of them is about digitalization and digital sovereignty. So far, we do not have a law that regulates this matter. The issue of the digital economy is also important, in 2021 our online shopping will be up to IDR 400 trillion. But 90 percent of what is sold is foreign products. So Indonesia is still just a rest area, we haven't enjoyed and become the main actors in this digital trade. We are preparing a digital platform for this online shopping. Later, 90 percent of what will be sold will be local products. This is what we have prepared for 2024, hopefully, it can be a differentiator from other parties. So it's not just a political gimmick or a matter of coalitions that are easily broken up and prone to conflict.

How big is the target for obtaining votes and seats in the legislature? Which areas are potential voting pockets?

Our hope is to reach double digits (10 or 11 percent of the national vote) nationally. But all depends on God's destiny. We want qualified legislative members to enter Senayan, not just complements. Our benchmark was 2014 when Mr. Amien Rais ran as a presidential candidate. There you can see which areas are sound reservoirs; DIY, Aceh and West Sumatra. There we are sure there are still many loyalists to Mr. Amien Rais. Apart from that, we are also working on potential areas such as West Java, Central Java and East Java. That is the priority scale, but we are not paying attention to areas outside of that, we are still working on them.

The Ummat Party will vote with other Islam-based parties, more specifically the Muhammadiyah masses, how will they fight in the same market?

The difference between the Ummat Party and other parties that label themselves as Islamic parties is that we do not eliminate the original identity of people who have previously joined Islamic mass organizations. Like the spirit of the Masyumi Party in the 1950s. Everyone can enter by bringing their respective flags. So we will accommodate the existing diversity. This is expected to be our differentiation.

What's the difference, especially for millennials?

We are a party that is concerned with the issue of digitalization. Not only in advanced fields like AI. We want to invite young people, millennials to have awareness of digital issues, about digital sovereignty. We must be aware that we are currently still colonized in the digital world. We want to be a party that raises awareness among young people about these things. Young people can do it. Young people in the future must be the decision makers in this digital field. During the 9 years I studied IT abroad, I found many young Indonesians who were leading in groups, they should be given positions and roles when they return to Indonesia.

For presidential and vice presidential candidates, is there no figure in the Ummat Party that can be proposed?

If there is a figure, for 2024 we will not be able to carry it out because there is a Presidential Threshold of 20 percent and a Parliamentary Threshold of 4 percent which we still cannot fulfill as a new party. In our opinion, this is the most magical threshold. Opportunities to become presidential and vice presidential candidates should be wide open, let the people choose. So we will carry the names that are already circulating.

As is known, the Ummat Party is already leaning towards Anies Baswedan, why him, is there a certain historical record?

We depart from the criteria, which resulted from the study. From the DPP we submit it to the Syuro Council. In the National Working Meeting we invite several candidates, which we invite; Anies Baswedan, Gatot Nurmantyo, and Prabowo Subianto. Those who came were Anies Baswedan and Gatot Nurmantyo. Of the two names, only Anies Baswedan was willing, Gatot Nurmantyo was not ready to be nominated as our presidential candidate. From there, we submit to the Syuro Council that the one that fits the criteria and needs of the nation is currently Anies Baswedan. So the process is the criteria first then the name appears, not reversed. I think that's what makes the current coalition of parties easy to break up. The problem is that the name already existed, when looking for the argument there is no common ground.

Amien Rais recently said that if Anies does not pass as a presidential candidate or does not qualify for the second round, there is a tendency to channel votes to Prabowo. Has this matter been discussed within the party?

I explained first that at that time Mr. Amien expressed this opinion in a hurry, at a doorstop after attending an event. If asked at this time, we are unanimous in supporting Anies Baswedan. How about the next stage, we will let you know later. Because it's still a long way off, we haven't discussed it now.

Politics is very fluid, isn't there any possibility to carry Prabowo's name?

Hehehe, we'll answer that later. Politics is very fluid. Even a person whose name has appeared as a presidential candidate can be canceled. We are still following and seeing further developments.

Does that mean there's no deal yet or what's the sign?

It's not a matter of a deal or no deal, indeed we are still focused on one candidate. As a new party, our focus is on the legislative election, not the presidential election. When we met with non-parliamentary parties, we explained why the KPU only conducts debates for the presidential and vice presidential candidates, not the legislative candidates. Maybe VOI or someone who wants to organize it? This is interesting.

Recently, you have often done goodwill to various regions, what are the aspirations of the people that you can absorb?

Various aspirations of the local community. Regarding the presidential candidate, they expressed Anies Baswedan. Regarding the economy, there are still gaps, and access to education is not evenly distributed. Regarding poverty, the number that has not changed is that only 27 percent of the 127 million population have higher education. That's generally the problem we catch, only there are specifics for each region.

In recent years, according to BPS data, economic growth has increased, how do you see it?

Claims like that could be, but the people who feel directly. They tell us the difficulties experienced. So the community will not feel economic growth then.

In your opinion, is it better for Muslims to gather in one party or spread out in many existing parties?

I agree with the Masyumi figure and one of the founding fathers of this nation, Moh Natsir. He said that Muslims who are diverse and spread across many mass organizations find it difficult to unite in one political party. Some parties make more sense. Please choose which party is suitable, the important thing is the goal. What was wrongly labeled was an Islamic party but the aim was turned around.

Currently, there are many Islamic political parties and also Islamic mass organizations, but they still emphasize their respective egos, how do you see this reality?

After Indonesia became independent, there were efforts to unite Muslims into one political party; Masjumi. But it only lasted 7 years. After that, there have been no proven examples like what happened to Masyumi. It's a tough challenge. But if we refer to the dictum of the Koran, Ali Imron: 104 is clear, the command to unite. Then there is also in Ali Imron: 105 there is also a command not to quarrel or separate. But there are also other verses that say it is impossible to unite all people. Only God can unite. What we can do is open a path to get there. This is what all politicians and parties labeled as Islamic must answer. We from the Ummat Party can be one of the triggers for that.

Funding a political party is not a small thing, for the Ummat Party where do the funds come from?

To finance our party, the contributions from members. So there is no financier to support it. So there is no dependence on them. Until some of us pay our dues, we become statues, hehehe. That's the dynamic. As a party that is barely there, thank God, it is there when it is needed. In the future, we will create a business unit for party income.

Political money cannot be eradicated yet, how do you deal with this?

This is an old disease that cannot be cured. For the Ummat Party, what do you want to give? We certainly lost financially to other parties. Even if someone gives it, it's just love. That's why we come with abilities, not with material. We encourage candidates to cultivate feelings when dealing with people. That's all we can do.

Ridho Rahmadi, AI Expert Who Now Leads the Ummat Party

Dr. Eng. H. Ridho Rahmadi, SKom., MSc., immediately became the spotlight after being announced as General Chairman of the Ummat Party DPP. The choice of his name as party captain not only surprised many people, but he himself was also shocked until it passed two days later. For Ridho, who was previously an IT lecturer at the Indonesian Islamic University (UII) Yogyakarta, the position he holds now is his calling and destiny in life.

The initial involvement of this man who was born in Yogyakarta, April 13 1985, in the Ummat Party was in the IT field according to his expertise. When it was about to be declared, Ridho's name had not yet appeared. During injury time, one of the founders of the Ummat Party proposed the name Ridho. The proposal was responded to by other meeting participants. Finally a consensus was reached and it was handed over to Amien Rais.

Ridho, who was present at the meeting, was shocked beyond words. He was present, but as an ordinary participant and did not sit at the front. "Because my field is IT, it will not be discussed yet. It turned out that my name was suggested," he said.

For the man who completed the Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science Program at UII (2008) and continued his master's degree at Johannes Kepler University Linz and the Czech Technical University (2012) in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), in some ways he has not changed even though he has now fully immersed as a politician.

"Even though I'm in the party now, there's actually something that hasn't changed about me. "Like how to organize work, how to decide on things, it turns out I only realized that this has existed since I became an academic," he said.

What really shaped him was his further studies abroad. "When doing research, it makes me analyze and make mature decisions," said the man who studied doctorate at Radboud University in Nijmegen (2019), Netherlands. He won a doctorate in Data Science & Machine Learning with research entitled "Finding Stable Causal Structures from Clinical Data."

Must Adapt

Navigating the practical political stage for Ridho Rahmadi, he had to adapt to the world of academics that he previously studied. “Entering the world of politics, I have to adapt, I have to have great resilience. Must be able to be flexible and adapt to various situations," he said.

He discovered something new in the world of politics, namely discovering various types of people. “On campus, I only found two types of people. There are good ones and very good ones. But in the world of politics I find that there are very many types of people, from A to Z there are," he said.

Moh Natsir's advice from MS Kaban to Ridho made a lasting impression. “Anything is fine, but it only ends in the realm of the mind. Don't take it to heart. If you take it to the liver, you can get a stomach ache," he said. "I said Mr. Kaban was late sir, I should have heard this advice two weeks ago. Because yesterday I had a stomach ache. I should have listened to this advice two weeks ago,” he continued, chuckling.

He will learn more with a new world and a new working climate. "During my two years in politics, I have experienced illnesses that I have never experienced before," said Ridho.

He emphasized that what he is doing now is enjoying the process that is happening. “Because that is the only choice I have to face now. Otherwise, I would have collapsed on the second day of being elected as General Chairman of the Ummat Party," he said.

Ridho intends what he is doing in this political arena to struggle in the way of Allah. "I intend this to be a mardhatillah struggle, seeking the pleasure of Allah SWT. Deviating from that could lead to collapse," he stressed.

Member of the Ummat Party

Ridho Rahmadi realizes the importance of drinking water. Due to not drinking enough water, he was rushed to the hospital. “Water is very important, I was hospitalized for four days because I didn't drink enough water. "In the future, I must not forget to drink enough water," he said.

The high level of activity in the political arena has made Ridho unable to exercise like he used to before. But he tried to keep moving and sweating. "Now I'm trying to be consistent, to exercise, walk about 5 kilometers per day, five rounds at GBK. Walking can make you lose weight. The problem is running can't make you lose weight. Especially if you run away from reality, hehehe," Ridho said in a joking tone.

For matters of food, Ridho began to reduce the intake of fatty foods. “Approaching the age of 40, I cut down on fatty, fried, and sugar foods. "In the future, I want to continue the fasting of prophet Daud (fasting once a day) which was stopped after I was sick," said Ridho, who imitated the habit of Amien Rais who also did the fasting of prophet Daud.

Entering a political party is a sacrifice for him, less time to meet family. “Once every two weeks, we can go back to Jogja for two or three days. That's what I optimize for family, wife, and children. Outside of that, it's just a phone call or video call. After that, we will return to the political stage," said Ridho, who likes to play and watch movies with his children.

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After Ridho Rahmadi became involved in the Ummat Party, he was blessed with one of the two children he had previously had. “So the story is that in 2019 I returned from the Netherlands. Then we made a program to have a third child, but we couldn't. Finally, my wife and I gave up. After joining the party it turned out that in the second year, my wife was pregnant. Maybe because you rarely meet, it's romantic when you meet. Finally, we were blessed with a third child. Thank God my third child is already a year old. This is a product of the Ummat Party, hehehe,” he said.

"The Ummat Party is a party that is concerned about digitalization issues. Not only in advanced fields such as AI. We want to invite young people, millennials to have awareness of digital issues, about digital sovereignty. We must realize that we are currently still colonized in the digital world. We want to be a party that raises awareness among young people about these things,"