APSN | FPI Jakarta rejects 'infidel' Basuki as governor

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FPI Jakarta rejects 'infidel' Basuki as governor

Jakarta Globe - September 18, 2014

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Arientha Primanita, Jakarta – The hard-line Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) will not accept the "arrogant non-Muslim" Basuki Tjahaja Purnama as the new governor of Jakarta and its members are ready to die to prevent him from assuming the post, one of the group's leaders said on Thursday.

Salim Bin Umar Alattas, who heads the FPI's Jakarta branch, said the group strongly objects to Basuki taking over the post from President-elect Joko Widodo because apart from the religious factor, it also sees him as ill-mannered.

"He is not a Muslim and he is too arrogant, his words are rude and he calls people names," Salim told the Jakarta Globe on Thursday. "It's not proper for a public official to act like that. He must learn ethics."

Joko, better known as Jokowi, is a Muslim and the Basuki, his deputy, is a Protestant Christian. The FPI has started hanging banners across town calling on people to reject Basuki, also known as Ahok.

"Since the start of the gubernatorial campaign of Jokowi and Ahok, we have rejected them because it is haram [forbidden in Islam] to choose kafir [infidel] leaders," he said. "Besides, [the people] chose Jokowi as a governor, not Ahok."

Basuki recently announced that he resigned from the Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party, over his disapproval of indirect elections of regional leaders, which the party strongly supports. The FPI was supporting Prabowo Subianto, Gerindra's chief patron, in the July presidential election.

However, Salim denied that the FPI's rejection of Ahok was based on political reasons. "This has nothing to do with politics or with Gerindra. It is purely because we can't take his arrogance anymore. We have been patient long enough with his attitude," he said.

The FPI leader announced the group would rally at the City Council (DPRD) building in Central Jakarta next Wednesday, and that he expected thousands of people from various mass organizations to attend.

"We will demand that the DPRD refuses to inaugurate Ahok as governor. We will prove that we are ready to be put in jail, or give our lives, to prevent Ahok from assuming the governorship."

Salim added that there are plenty of legal ways to prevent Basuki from taking charge after Joko becomes president on Oct. 20.

"The district chief of Garut [in West Java], Aceng Fikri, was fired only because he married a second wife, which is halal [allowed in Islam], then why can't Ahok be fired because he is a non-Muslim and he is arrogant?," he said.

Basuki has said he doesn't worry too much about people having reservations about him because of his background as a Chinese-Indonesian Christian. "So many people reject me, I'm fine with it," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/jakarta/fpi-jakarta-rejects-infidel-basuki-governor/.