Photo: BPMI Setpres/Rusman
"The first Minister of Religion in Soekarno's Presidential Cabinet was KH Wahid Hasyim, his father Gus Dur who we know as the son of the founder of NU Hadratussyaikh KH Hasyim Asyari. About three months later, when he entered the cabinet under PM Sjahrir I, then the Minister of Religion was KH M. Rasjidi who incidentally is a Masjumi-Muhammadiyah figure," said Arsul. Meanwhile, Commission VIII of the DPR reminded the Minister of Religion, Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, to remain careful in issuing statements. Because he is a public official.
Chairman of Commission VIII DPR RI Yandri Susanto, assessed that as a state official, Minister of Religion Yaqut should understand that in the digital era, everything will quickly spread and become public consumption. All words and behavior of officials will easily go viral.
"You still have to be careful, whether you want to be internal, to be closed, to have limited meetings. Because nowadays, in the era of social media, information is received very quickly," Yandri told reporters, Monday, October 25.
The PAN politician then suggested that Minister of Religion Yaqut be able to provide a complete explanation regarding the function of the Ministry of Religion, which was formed to take care of all matters of various faiths in Indonesia.
"The Ministry of Religion belongs to all groups, belongs to all religions. To be emphasized again, there is no specificity for Nahdlatul Ulama," said Yandri.
The head of the commission in charge of religion said Yaqut must convey that everyone without exception has the same opportunity to occupy strategic positions in the Ministry of Religion.
"The same opportunity to occupy any position or from any group is open at the Ministry of Religion, not specifically Nahdlatul Ulama," concluded Yandri.
Minister of Religion Clarifies His Statement For Internal NU
Responding to criticism from various parties, Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil Qoumas opened his voice regarding his statement. According to him, the statement is a limited statement for NU's internal circles. He explained that the purpose of his statement was only to encourage the students and the Islamic boarding school.
"Isn't that wrong? That's because it's internal," said Minister of Religion Yaqut to reporters on Monday, October 25. Yaqut then made an analogy with his statement as when someone is making love under the moonlight. Instantly, he said, it would be said that the world belongs to both of them while the other is only a contract.
The Minister of Religion ensured that so far the Ministry of Religion's policies were not only for NU. Because, according to him, the Ministry of Religion gives proportional rights to mass organizations, not only NU circles.
In fact, he said, the Director General of Hajj and Umrah was led by Muhammadiyah cadres. Also, the Inspector General of the Ministry of Religion is also not from the NU circle.
"So it's normal, encouraging is natural, it's an internal forum. It's an internal forum, it's an encouraging context," said Minister of Religion Yaqut.
Minister of Religion deserves to be removed and PAN takes over
Political observer, Dedi Kurnia Syah, believes that Minister of Religion Yaqut made a mistake and must explain the purpose of his statement so that it is not considered to be paving the way for collusion in the ministry he leads.
"The statement clearly contains collusion, and there needs to be a firm statement from the Minister of Religion if he made a mistake in making the statement," said Dedi, Monday, October 25.
According to him, if there is no clarification by the Minister of Religion, it will be considered as allowing the existence of mafia positions in the Ministry of Religion without considering quality and capacity. He is worried that the Minister of Religion's primordial attitude will affect national consolidation efforts.
"This means that Yaqut is not worthy of a ministerial position. And it is sad because it eliminates diversity in Indonesia," he explained. The Executive Director of Indonesia Political Opinion (IPO) also believes that President Jokowi should reprimand the Minister of Religion for his tumultuous remarks.
"It's better if the president reprimands him directly and harshly," concluded Dedi. Meanwhile, the Director of the Indonesian Political, Legal and Policy Research Center (PRPHKI), Saiful Anam assessed that Minister of Religion Yaqut deserved to be removed based on the recent rowdy dynamics.
On the one hand, he said, the National Mandate Party (PAN), which had been introduced as a friend of the coalition, could be placed to fill the position.
According to him, the inclusion of PAN cadres also dismissed the claim of Minister of Religion Yaqut that the Ministry of Religion was a special gift for NU. This is because PAN has a close relationship with Muhammadiyah.
"We know that PAN is very close to Muhammadiyah. So it is not wrong if Jokowi can use this momentum as best he can to expel Yaqut and include PAN cadres who are Muhammadiyah," said Saiful, Wednesday, October 27.
It could also, he said, give the position of the Minister of Religion to a professional group that is not from a political party. Thus, they can better position themselves in relation to all recognized religions in Indonesia.
"I think the Minister of Religion Yaqut really doesn't deserve to be defended," concluded Saiful.
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