Exclusif, In Memoriam Aria Baron, Armand Maulana Apprend De La Pandémie De COVID-19

JAKARTA - Losing Aria Baron as the manager of the GIGI Band, made Armand Maulana feel devastated. Not in his imagination, COVID-19 will snatch the guitarist who built the GIGI Band with him on June 29 yesterday.

"It was quite surprising because the deceased was the most chatty person during this pandemic, there was even a GIGI crew who was rested first after going home from Tasik, Sukabumi. They used public transportation to go to Jakarta afraid of being exposed on the road. So he was the most fussy about protocol, " said Armad during a virtual chat with VOI, Friday, July 2.

Armand said that as a manager, the owner of the full name Aria Baron Suprayogi is very strict about health protocols. Even when performing virtually, the Baron always made sure that he could keep his distance in the room.

"At the venue as well as the virtual shooting show he was the most assertive. He asked who this was, who was this? He asked for everything to be clear according to the SOP. That's why we were surprised when Baron was hit, because he was the most chatty," recalled Armand.

He then told the Baron's struggle to recover from COVID-19 was not easy. Every effort and effort was made to restore the man who was born in Bandung on January 16, 1970.

"He was forced to enter the Athlete's House for two or three days. Because he was already feeling crowded, and the Athlete's House was full, he was finally assisted by Om Hendro Priono and Abdee Slank to the Police Hospital. There began to rarely communicate, usually what's up in the group. Then he was transferred to the RSPAD, because they need a ventilator. Now from the RSPAD there are no more talks with DENTAL children because they have been put to sleep," he explained.

The last time the communication with the Baron was before the Baron was put on a ventilator. At that time Hendi was called because there were four shows in the future. He gave directions for the implementation of the show.

"Hendy said never mind, focus on treatment, if there was a slight error during the event, people would understand because Abah was sick. Then Hendy told us, he was really sad in the last communication because he said it word by word, he was already short of breath," said Armand.

After the ventilator was installed, Baron's condition rose and fell. At that time, the Baron family and GIGI announced the need for convalescent plasma donors through social media.

"Me, Budjana, and Hendi had time to go to the RSPAD to visit him. It was sad, the nurse doctor was given a walki talki, we chatted, when we said the saturation went up and down, it meant he was responding," he recalls.

Apparently, that was the last meeting of the GIGI personnel with the Baron. After his death, Baron's body was immediately buried in Karawang, West Java.

The departure of Aria Baron is a deep loss for the music group Gigi. Baron has been a member of GIGI since the group was formed on March 22, 1994.

At that time, GIGI had the formation of Baron on guitar, Armand Maulana on vocals, Dewa Budjana on guitar, Thomas Ramdhan on bass, and Ronald Fristianto on drums. A year after Gigi entered the music scene, Baron decided to leave to continue his education to the United States (US).

Now, GIGI has Armand, Budjana, Thomas, and Gusti Hendy on drums. Even though they are no longer under Gigi's banner, Armand cs and Baron's relationship is still good. Evidently, in 2016 Baron rejoined Gigi, not as a guitarist, but as a manager.

"Losing Baron feels like losing a brother. Now Baron is indeed the manager of GIGI, but the one who formed GIGI is Baron. After leaving, Baron finally returned to our house, GIGI. Maybe the relationship is not like a band with an ordinary manager. It's more like brothers and sisters collaborating in group. It's really a loss, "he said.

The figure of the Baron, according to Armand, cannot be replaced. As a musician as well as a manager, Baron mastered everything well.

"The Baron is multi-talented. He is full of knowledge, but still wants to go to college. He is a person who wants to know everything. Sometimes we get annoyed that he wants to learn things that are not in his field," recalled Armand.

However, Dewi Gita's husband admits that the Baron's ability to master many fields shows his intelligence. He gave an example of how the Baron was very thorough in tax matters.

"In the management of GIGI, he is very neat. Other band managers have even learned from him. There was one incident, a tax person was given a tax briefing on a band. He was told what he was saying, and it was true what he said. one in one million of musicians who can be like that. That's why he lost we think we have to find how many people to replace him," he said.

What made Armand no longer find it hard to let go of the Baron was his belief that Aria Baron died with khusnul khotimah. "What I can say is that the need for blood plasma for the Baron spreads very quickly and those who spread the information come from all kinds of circles," he explained.

Armand is fully aware that the Baron is not popular as a musician, but a lot of help comes from all over the place they don't expect. "The baron has a lot of friends. When we go out of town, he's always never at the hotel to rest. He's always in touch, he doesn't know whether he's meeting close friends or new acquaintances. During the recitation, it is distributed to the New York community because he has lived there. And it turns out that during the virtual recitation, Baron's friends from various countries brought together," he said.

Armand had seen with his own eyes how the Baron liked to make friends with scavengers, people he didn't know. "Until this moment the prayer invitations for the Baron are still there. Asking GIGI members to represent them virtually. This is beyond our imagination," he said.

Indonesia is currently being hit by the COVID-19 storm and Aria Baron is one of the victims. Hospitals are full, the number of deaths is increasing, the number of victims is increasing, oxygen cylinders are scarce, so the government has to impose an Emergency Community Activity Restriction (PPKM).

As a survivor of COVID-19, Armand hopes that this condition can be overcome soon. "If we look at the pandemic, we can't say one by one, but we must unite. I'm not pro-government how about. But any government, if its citizens don't work together, even if they are still noisy with hoaxes, this pandemic won't end," he said.

As a Muslim, the father of one child believes that this pandemic is an unavoidable destiny. "It's true that we pray to God, but if we don't try, we're just lying. We pray right, but if there's no effort from citizens, we can't," he was sure.

Armand gave an example of how Singapore and America could control the pandemic thanks to the government's efforts, which were fully supported by their citizens. "We can see how Singapore, America, have now recovered. Football has an audience, concerts can have spectators. It means that the government's decision is really made by its citizens," he said.

The personal experience of Armand Maulana and Dewi Gita when taking Naja Dewi Maulana to London for college can be a real example of how health protocols can help prevent exposure to COVID-19.

"I took my son to school in England twice. Incidentally, the first time was London being locked down. It was the first time I saw England being so quiet. Before the pandemic, the airport and trains were very busy. It was very quiet," he recalls.

The second time, because they wanted to celebrate Eid with their children, they returned to London. "It's been done, the restaurant is open, London is busy again. The surge in COVID-19 is normal, my son said. So if there is a pandemic problem, it won't work if the citizens are stubborn," he explained.

Armand added that the existence of conspiracy stories also added to the difficulty of Indonesia getting out of the pandemic. "I'm surprised that people are fussing over conspiracy issues. It's up to you whether you want a conspiracy or what, but this virus already exists. Like influenza, DB, typhoid. If there is, we must try to overcome it," he hoped.

Armand's experience when he was exposed to COVID-19 was a valuable experience to share. Also how when they struggle to self-isolate when their child is exposed in London and live together in one small room, it can be proof that COVID-19 can be reversed.

"I'm a survivor. What's interesting is when I took Naja to London. The three of them left in good health, negative for COVID-19. Armand has been vaccinated once and his position is a survivor. While his wife and child are healthy, they have never been exposed even though they haven't been vaccinated. Naja was positive," he recalls.

Undergoing self-isolation for 10 days in a foreign country is definitely not an easy matter. "The rules are in England, until we are given a test kit to test ourselves on the second and eighth day. On the second day, in the swab, I was negative, Dewi was negative, Naja was positive," he said.

Armand compares the difficulty of self-isolation in the UK. When he is positive at home, Armand easily divides the upper and lower rooms as a place of isolation. But in London, the three of them had to be together in one small room which meant that the risk of Dewi and Armand being exposed was huge.

"What is the name of the boarding house, there is one bathroom, the kitchen is there too. In England it is very difficult to find medicine, because you have to use a prescription from a doctor. Dewi and I are strict with wearing masks for 24 hours. If we are stuffy and tired, we go out for a while , take off the mask, take a breath, come back again. Even though the room is together, thank God Naja is negative, we are not infected. So it has been proven by me. If you obey the prokes, it's safe," he said.

Regarding vaccines to speed up recovery, Armand has his own opinion. "If the vaccine is a lie, it's not only Indonesian citizens who have been injected. But millions of people in the world. If the vaccine is a lie and is dangerous, then maybe hundreds of thousands of people will die in this world," he explained.

Armand continued, if it is true that people died after being vaccinated, according to him, there must be a scientific explanation. "When you want to inject the vaccine, there is a sheet that must be filled out. That's to know your medical history. So you can't lie, because you're afraid that if you lie, the vaccine will react differently. If someone says vomiting, nausea after the vaccine, I don't happen to be I'm just sleepy, after an hour's sleep after the vaccine. I'm not a doctor, but I'm sure when the doctor puts something foreign into the body there will be a reaction. And the reaction is different, that's normal, but don't fry it," he said

Vaccines, he hopes, can reduce the risk of being exposed to COVID-19. So that the economic condition will recover soon. The band GIGI also hopes to be active again.

"Thank God GIGI survived, still able to show virtual. But because of PPKM the show was postponed. Even though TV shows don't involve a lot of people, let alone music shows. But yes, we must remain optimistic," he concluded.