There's no such thing as a free lunch...Or is there?

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It's official. The next president of Indonesia is former army general Prabowo Subianto. Quite how the next five years will pan out is anyone's guess but hopefully the foreign pundits who always bring up his dodgy human rights record will be proven wrong. Nonetheless, on policy making, Prabowo's popularist move to literally offer the poor 'a free lunch' every day of the week does not augur well for the future. Such a policy - if it ever came to fruition - would cost a phenomenal amount of money and likely lead to huge inefficiencies (food waste) and poor incentives (make people lazy). Another concern is Prabowo's strong nationalist bent. Thus, in the possible event that he finds himself with his back against the proverbial wall in the face of stern economic challenges, there is a big chance that he will simply scapegoat foreigners. But he will have to be careful. Construction of the new capital city, Nusantara, for example, is highly dependent on foreign in

Barack Obama shows up in Menteng!

Good old Obama has finally showed up in Jakarta – although not in person - but as a charming young lad wearing what seems to be a typical Indonesian school uniform. But no, this ain’t thanks to time travel but rather the wishes of the Jakarta-based “Friends of Obama Foundation” who wish to see Obama honored before he has made any significant achievements in the political arena whatsoever.

Barack Obama statue in Menteng, Central Jakarta

The statue and its pedestal stand two meters tall and is located in Menteng Park, Central Jakarta. As for the butterfly perched in Obama’s outstretched hand, some reckon it’s there to signify the power of dreams although more cynical observers believe it alludes to Barry’s fondness for the waif-like creatures that can often be found hovering after dark (uh? oxymoron or what?) at the Taman Lawang Park, also in Menteng. 

However, there are considerable risks of erecting a statue of a still living individual who can be considered as an “inspiring figure” or “role model to the youth”. After all, it wasn’t so long ago that we all thought Tiger Woods was more wholesome than a bowl of Kellogg's Muesli. But now? Well, even Rod Stewart would feel jealous of old Tiger’s super stud status. What a change! And only in a few weeks! Heck, all we need now is for some dude to advocate a Greek-style statue of former first lady Dewi Sukarno to pay tribute to her particular “contribution” to society. Hold on a sec. What a bloody great idea!

Comments

  1. This statue is embarrased me as an Indonesian. Why they don't built a statue of Sutan Syahrir, or Mohammad Hatta instead of him...what a lovely country haha..

    ReplyDelete
  2. Good point. You never know if Obama might turn into Tiger Woods or Bill Clinton.

    ReplyDelete

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