Jokowi: I Realize There Are So Many Criticisms For The Government, Especially Things We Can't Solve Yet

President Jokowi (Presidential Secretariat Youtube/BPMI)

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo admits that currently, many parties criticize the government, especially on policies and programs that have not been completed until now.

He said this when he was a keynote speaker at the 6th Congress of the Indonesian Television Journalists Association.

"I am also aware that there are so many criticisms of the government, especially on matters that we have not been able to resolve," Jokowi said on the Presidential Secretariat's Youtube video broadcast, Friday, October 29.

Jokowi views that criticism for the government is very important, especially constructive criticism. The government, he said, would answer with responsibility in order to produce the expected results for the benefit of the people.

On this occasion, Jokowi also admitted that he would uphold the commitment to maintain press freedom, open space for members of the press to voice public interests and be open to critical and solution-driven attitudes in guarding various government policies.

In the midst of the flood of information, Jokowi considers the role of journalists to be increasingly important to be a torch from the darkness, keep the situation clear, and generate optimism and hope in society.

"Journalism is not just facts but also takes into account the impact, not just good journalism but also wise journalism. Wise journalism. Today's press is a press that is able to adapt quickly, is agile to catch up, quickly learns new competencies, is innovative in facing the era of technological disruption," said Jokowi.

He said that the presence of various new media platforms should spur journalists to be more creative and productive, continue to strengthen their value as credible disseminators of information, increase accuracy, and maintain independence and objectivity.

"The presence of new media platforms must also support the transformation of the nation's progress. It is not merely motivated to accumulate the number of viewers, accumulate the number of subscribers, accumulate the number of likes, or even just clickbait, but should be able to contribute to the nation's society and humanity," he concluded.