Gus Yahya Affirms that PBNU is Together with Prabowo-Gibran

The Halalbihalal was attended by, among others, the elected president and vice president, Prabowo-Gibran. With the presence of Prabowo and Gibran, it means that PBNU becomes the first Islamic organization visited by Prabowo-Gibran after they were declared as the elected president and vice president.

In the future, Nahdlatul Ulama will never fail to be with the incoming president and vice president, Prabowo-Gibran.

A number of ministers were also present, including Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, Investment Minister/Head of Investment Coordinating Board Bahlil Lahadalia, Planning Minister/Head of National Development Planning Agency Suharso Monoarfa, Minister of Communications and Informatics Budi Arie Setiadi, and East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa.

The event was also attended by the Head of the Indonesian National Police, General (Pol) Listyo Sigit Prabowo and the Commander of the Indonesian National Army, General Agus Subiyanto, as well as Ambassadors from several countries, such as the Ambassador of Palestine, Saudi Arabia, India, Singapore, the European Union, Brazil, Jordan, Morocco, Malaysia, and the United Kingdom.

In front of the attendees, Yahya revealed that NU was once a respected political party that had great political power in Indonesia. Even though NU is no longer a political party, public support for the Islamic mass organization founded by KH Hasyim Asy'ari is still relatively high. This is proven by a number of surveys, starting from surveys conducted by LSI Denny JA, Litbang Kompas, to Political Indicators, which show that more than 50 percent of Indonesian people feel part of NU.

Seeing the great support from the community, NU is committed to supporting the government. "There is no more appropriate role for NU management than helping the government to ensure that the government's agenda which is intended for the benefit of the people at large actually reaches the people," said the man who is often called Gus Yahya that.

For the past few years, according to Yahya, PBNU has been supporting President Joko Widodo's government. The support for Jokowi's government continues by supporting Prabowo-Gibran.

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"This is the foundation of our thinking, which is why from the beginning we conveyed that NU, together with President Jokowi, wants to help ensure that government programs created for the welfare of the people reach the people," he said.

Yahya also stated that he accepts Prabowo-Gibran as part of the NU family. "If at this time Mr. Prabowo Subianto and Mas Gibran are present as the elected president and vice president, their presence today also has a special context. Their presence is as our member, a member of the NU family," he said.

Responding to the statement, Prabowo expressed his honor in being accepted as part of the NU family. "I would like to thank the statement that the NU family will oversee and support the upcoming government," said Prabowo.

Prabowo recounted that his closeness with the NU extended family had existed since he was young, precisely when he was still a member of the Army. As a member of the Army, Prabowo often faced challenging and dangerous tasks.

"If asked why a soldier is close to a cleric, it is actually very simple because a soldier since young often gets sent to dangerous areas facing death. When facing death, they seek the clerics. In the area where I serve in West Java, many of the clerics are from NU (a Muslim organization) so it is natural to have a close relationship with them," he said.

Prabowo expresses gratitude for the support given by the NU community. According to him, building Indonesia cannot be done solely by the elected president and vice-president. Resolving national issues requires cooperation from various community groups, such as NU which is filled with moderate Islamic organizations, inclusive strengths, humility, and great confidence.

"With the support of these forces, as well as the strength of other elements such as Christian, Hindu, and Buddhist elements, we will safeguard the nation's safety," he said.

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