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Jakarta, CNN Indonesia –
President Joko widodo I will give Mahaputera Star Award to the former Commander General of the TNI (Ret.) Gatot Nurmantyo coinciding with the commemoration of Heroes’ Day on November 10.
Bintang Mahaputera itself is a show of service for Indonesian citizens who are considered to have participated in building the country. This award is usually awarded by the State to citizens who have retired as ministers or heads of institutions.
Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs (Menko Polhukam) Mahfud MD said that Bintang Mahaputera’s gift to Gatot was a mistake.
Gatot is the first TNI commander appointed by Jokowi since he took office in 2014. He has also had frequent discussions with the government since he was no longer the TNI commander.
According to Mahfud, the gift would be seen as an attempt to silence Gatot, who is often critical of the government. However, if it is not given, it will be considered discrimination because in fact the Star Mahaputera is a right of Gatot.
“The government knows whether or not to give Bintang Mahaputera to Pak Gatot Nurmantyo (GN) should be someone who questions it,” Mahfud was quoted as saying. CNNIndonesia.com via his Twitter account, Tuesday (3/11).
“If it is given, it is said to be silent, if not it is said to be discriminatory against critics. But Bintang Mahaputra is a right of Pak GN and Ms. Susi Pujiastuti,” he said.
Gatot recently joined the Coalition for Action to Save Indonesia (WE), a forum for activists who are critical of the government of Joko Widodo.
However, Gatot’s track record while serving as commander in 2015-2017 is no less interesting. He is known as an imposing figure that is firm and invites many sensations.
 TNI Commander General Gatot Nurmantyo after the 17 17 17 prayer ceremony at TNI headquarters, Cilangkap, Jakarta on Thursday (8/17). (CNN Indonesia / Feri Agus Setyawan) |
As a TNI commander, his figure is admired by most Muslims because he often appeared in mass demonstrations in 2016 in his military clothing and white cap.
Of all his activities while serving as Commander, his appearances in Actions 411 and 212 are perhaps the most remembered by the public. However, it was said that Gatot’s presence at the 411 rally had an element of intention and was arranged in such a way that Jokowi as president did not appear and took control of the stage.
But then, at 212 Action, Gatot joined Jokowi in meeting with the masses who had gathered in Monas and held Friday prayers together.
Also attached is Gatot’s history regarding the cancellation of the acquisition of the Heli AW 101. Gatot directly requested the Chief of Staff of the Air Force who was in charge at the time to cancel the purchase of the Heli whose agreement had been signed.
At that time, Gatot followed the wish of Jokowi, who considered that the cooperation for the purchase of helicopters with PT Diratama Jaya Mandiri was too expensive, because the funds that had to be disbursed reached Rp738 billion. Gatot even issued an order to investigate the acquisition of these helicopters, until finally the project was declared indicative of corruption.
Another Heli project, another ordering issue. Gatot also once asked the TNI ranks to watch the film G30S / PKI together. Many disagreed with Gatot’s order, because the film was considered a propaganda tool for the New Order.
However, Gatot did not care. He openly admitted to giving orders to see the film. He also explained that the reason he spoke often about the PKI was because he did not want the organization to come back to life.
Aside from the PKI problem, Gatot had also discovered the purchase of 5,000 weapons outside his agency, which sparked a controversy. This information was originally presented at an internal event and not for publication.
However, this statement had a wide circulation, causing quite a long controversy. Until finally Wiranto, who at that time was serving as Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, raised his voice and said that the problem of buying arms did exist but was not illegal. The weapon was purchased for intelligence purposes.
(tst / pmg)
[Gambas:Video CNN]
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