REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Historian Anhar Gonggong opined that those opposing Pancasila and keen on seeking a replacement of the state ideology have no understanding of the history of the nation. Parties who want to replace the state ideology of Pancasila really do not understand the sociological and anthropological reality of the Indonesian nation, he remarked here on Wednesday.
He noted that Pancasila is a binding force of the country that was founded by various tribes, with varied cultural, linguistic, and religious backgrounds."It must be reme mbered that all these tribes were, in fact, part of a state. At least 30 kingdoms were considered large in the past, and that was Indonesia," he remarked.
With heterogeneous and pluralistic conditions, it is impossible to unite the country if there is no binding force, according to the lecturer at the National Resilience Institute ."If there was no binding force, Indonesia would have split, but due to the binding force in the form of Pancasila, Indonesia has remained united until this day," Anhar noted.
The historian then pointed out that some nations that failed to remain united, include Korea, China, and the Arab states. Moreover, he stated that Pancasila is the foundation of the state that was formulated by the two great powers of this nation: nationalist and religious forces.
On Thursday, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) calls on the people not to be easily deceived by the swarm of flying issues seeking to instill pessimism. Moreover, Indonesia is a very big nation.
"But often we are not aware of it. From the beginning Indonesia has been a big nation with its diversity and this is a gift from God," Jokowi said at the Malang Islamic University, East Java.
Earlier this month, Jokowi's most potential rival facing the forthcoming presidential election Prabowo Subianto issued a controversial statement that Indonesia would cease to exist in 2030.
The general chairman of the Gerindra Party, quoting a fiction, predicted the dissolution of the country in the next 12 years. However, Prabowo said he was not being a pessimist.
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