Gus Ulil: Erick Thohir Will Make NU Lakpesdam Like Bappenas

Erick Thohir. (Photo: Instagram @erickthohir)

JAKARTA - General Chairperson of the Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU) Executive Board, Yahya Cholil Staquf, officially appointed Erick Thohir as Chairman of the PBNU Institute for Research and Human Resources Development (Lakpesdam). Erick Thohir's appointment as Chairman of Lakpesdam, was not without reason.

According to KH Ulil Abshar Abdalla, the chairman of PBNU wants the PBNU Lakpesdam under the leadership of Erick Thohir (ET) to be able to act as the PBNU National Planning Agency (Bappenas).

"ET is predicted by Gus Yahya to make Lakpesdam like Bappenas. Institutions that design developments and directions from all Islamic initiative activities in NU, and I also hope that under the (leading) Pak ET, this institution will really increase its class to be like Bappenas," said Gus Ulil, Saturday, December 2.

According to Gus Ulil, Lakpesdam is a legacy institution from Gusdur (KH Abdurrahman Wahid) which was founded in 1985, several months after the historical congress in NU history, the 27th mu'tamar in Situbondo in 1985.

However, when asked whether Erick Thohir was invited to the NU 2023 Thought Conference, Gus Ulil said that PBNU did not invite the Minister of SOEs. According to Gus Ulil, this was done by PBNU to prevent unwanted things, such as linking NU events with politics.

"Pak Erick was not invited, because we want to focus on discussing non-political issues, however, if Mr. ET is invited, later bjsa will cause various interpretations, we want this forum to focus on issues that are subtansial in nature," explained Gus Ulil.