National Awakening Day is Momentum to Rebound After Pandemic, Minister Says
National Awakening Day Ceremony at Presidential Palace compound, Monday (05/22) in Jakarta. (Photo by: Rahmat/PR)
The commemoration of the 115th National Awakening Day this year is the right momentum to build a joint effort in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to acting Minister of Communication and Informatics Mahfud MD.
For the record, this year’s National Awakening Day is the first commemoration after the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the revocation of the pandemic status for COVID-19 on May 5, 2023.
“This is a momentum to see the day as an effort to build a national spirit to rebound after the pandemic,” said Mahfud.
The Minister went on to say that the Indonesian people should be grateful for successfully going through and recover from the pandemic that hit the world for the past three years, adding that the success is also due to the collaboration of everyone in the country.
“Everyone joined hands and collaborated to uphold the values of unity and oneness in an effort to escape multiple global crises, including health, economy, even geopolitics crisis,” he added.
The awakening of the Indonesian nation in the midst of a world crisis, Mahfud added, was also shown through Indonesia’s progress in various international forums.
In 2022, Indonesia successfully held the presidency of the G20, a forum of 20 member countries or regional entities with the largest economic power in the world, while this year Indonesia assumes the chairmanship of ASEAN, a forum for cooperation between countries in the Southeast Asian region.
“With the theme ‘ASEAN Matters: Epicentrum of Growth’, Indonesia aspires to make Southeast Asia an important and relevant region for the world in responding to regional and global challenges, while strengthening ASEAN’s position as the epicenter of world economic growth,” he said.
The world’s high trust in Indonesia, continued Mahfud, also serves as a momentum to implement the spirit of national awakening in ushering in the post-COVID-19 era, as well as the journey towards Golden Indonesia 2045.
In line with the spirit of dr. Soetomo, the co-founder of Budi Utomo, the first native political society in the Dutch East Indies, Mahfud also called on the nation to maintain the spirit of national awakening and continue working hard, working smart, and working together for the sake of independence and sustainable progress of the nation.
“Happy 115th National Awakening Day for our nation. Let us fight, learn, grow, and keep moving forward with the spirit to rebound,” he said. (FID/UN) (EST/EP)
