Viral on Social Media, Participants of the MPR's 4-Pillar Smart and Careful Program Receive Somasi Threats

JAKARTA - Josepha Alexandra's name has been in the public spotlight after her protest video against the jury's decision at the Smart Smart Competition (LCC) 4 Pillars of the MPR RI at West Kalimantan went viral on social media.

The controversy was further discussed after the family admitted to receiving pressure and threats related to the video that had spread widely.

In a post that circulated on social media, Joseph's sister revealed that her younger brother suffered from mental stress after the protest video went viral. He said that Joseph was even having trouble sleeping and losing his appetite due to the pressure he received.

"My brother is a participant in the LCC 4 Pillars of West Kalimantan. He answered correctly, but he got minus 5. Other teams answered the same thing, got plus 10," he wrote on a social media account quoted on Tuesday, May 12.

He also questioned the jury's decision, which was considered inconsistent when giving the assessment to the competition participants. According to the confession, Joseph's answer was judged to be wrong, while the similar answer from the other team was declared correct.

"In front of the MPR RI YouTube live camera, he answered loudly, 'the BPK members are elected by the DPR with consideration for the DPD and inaugurated by the president.' The jury said it was wrong and minus 5. About being thrown to another team. The answer is the same. The jury said this was right and a score of 10. I replayed it until my eyes were hot. There is no difference," he wrote again.

He also revealed that his younger brother was confused because he was viral. He asked his older brother, whether he should apologize.

"He asked me, 'kak, do I have to apologize? He said I was the one who made a fuss'. And I don't know what to answer. In your opinion, does my sister need to make a video of her apology? What should my sister do," he asked on social media.

Joseph's sister assessed that her younger brother only expressed reasonable objections and asked for fair treatment in the race. He denied the assumption that Josepha was deliberately looking for sensation.

"Dia bukan lebay. Dia bukan cari drama. Dia cuma minta satu hal yang paling basic, yakni diperlakukan adil," tulisnya.

In addition, the brother said, Josepha admitted to receiving a WhatsApp message from an unknown party asking for the viral video to be deleted from social media. In the screenshot shared, a message with a threat of summons can be seen if the video is not downloaded.

"Good morning, we inform you again to delete the video on IG, otherwise we will send a summons," read the threatening message uploaded by the brother.

The upload triggered a wave of sympathy from netizens. Many netizens gave support to Josepha and asked for the controversy in the competition to be investigated transparently.

In the midst of the developing controversy, Josepha was also said to have received a scholarship offer to China from a member of the MPR. In another post it was stated that this step was a form of appreciation for his courage to voice his opinion.

"This is a form of appreciation, he is a child of the nation who dares to speak up and defend the truth, we must support," wrote the circulating post.

Until now, the controversy regarding the assessment of the LCC 4 Pillars of the MPR RI West Kalimantan is still widely discussed on social media and there has been no further official statement from the organizers regarding the alleged intimidation and threat of summons that went viral.