Remarks of President of the Republic of Indonesia at the Gathering with Customers of PT Permodalan Nasional Madani’s Program Membina Ekonomi Keluarga Sejahtera (Mekaar: Building Prosperous Household Economy Program) at the Yard of Cilenggang Public Service Mall, South Tangerang, Banten Province, February 19, 2024

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim,
Assalamu’alaikum warrahmatullahi wabarakatuh,
Good morning, may prosperity be upon us all.

Distinguished Cabinet Secretary, Mr. Pramono Anung;

Distinguished Governor of Banten Province;

Distinguished Mayor and Deputy Mayor of South Tangerang;

Distinguished President Director of PNM Mekaar;

Distinguished PNM Mekaar customers;

Distinguished Account Officers (AO) who are always ready to help all customers;

Distinguished Guests, ladies and gentlemen.

I am very happy this morning to see all of you looking very enthusiastic, very enthusiastic. This is the basic capital in our efforts: the work ethic. This is very important. Then, after work ethic, the second is discipline. This is also important. If the installment payment is due by Monday, then we have to pay it on Monday. Correct? If it’s due on Friday, then we have to be prepared to pay by Friday. This is discipline. For work ethic, I have no doubt about it. I can clearly see it from all of you attending here, the spirit, I can see the burst of passionate enthusiasm here.

I want to convey how important work ethic is. I also started doing business from scratch, from zero, by selling my products only around Solo City at that time. In the second year of my business, I was able to reach the market in Jakarta. Then in the third year, I was able to export my products. But what I would like to share is my work ethic. My friends worked from 8 to 4. I saw them working from 8 to 4. I worked from dawn to midnight. It’s exhausting, indeed, but the results were great. The work ethic will be reflected in our increasing total sales. Business profits continue to rise, which is a reflection of our work ethic. But, if you work from 8 to 4, just the same as what has been done by others, then your business will be good, but it’s average. Correct? Do you agree?

Then, I saw the products for sale, I watched the product demonstrations. This sugarcane juice is packaged in a very nice bottle. The taste, even though I haven’t tasted it yet, I’m sure it will taste good too. What can’t be found here? It should have a label, the brand, logo. A title is important. A product must be given a good name. I also saw these meatballs that are also packed in a very good packaging. They were hygienic, but please give them a label, a brand, a name so that it will be easier to sell.

This one is also nice. It’s 16 thousand, 15 thousand, 15 thousand. If we buy Kentucky Fried Chicken, it’s 25 thousand. I asked the lady selling it, 15 thousand. It has good ingredients. It has nothing but chicken and rice, but the packaging is excellent. Please give it a name also, label, branding so that the packaging will be better. This is great. With this kind of packaging, it will be easier to sell. It will be highly marketable, and most importantly, it can compete with other well-known brands because of its good packaging. Well, this one is sambal (chili sauce), pencok gledek sambal, pencok gledek. This is good and I asked earlier about the brand, Wanstin. It’s such a cool name for sambal, Wanstin. I asked, “What does Wanstin mean, Bu?” “Oh, it stands for Wawan and Gustin, Pak.” Great, this is great. Wanstin, Wawan, is the husband and the wife’s name is Agustin, combined together into Wanstin. It’s good. So, if a product is given a brand or a label, it will be easier to sell. This is good.

What I want to say is, this city, South Tangerang, has so many products. Most of them are food and I notice almost all of them are delicious. Therefore, it creates a tight competition and we can only win such a tight competition if we have good prices. It’s neither expensive nor overly cheap. If it’s overly cheap, it could cost us money. The most important thing is that the price is competitive.

Second, quality, this is very important. When we produce a product, we have to prioritize its quality. This is very important. Because people will compare a product with other similar products. With the same price of Rp10 thousand, people will think about which one to choose. They will definitely choose the one with better quality. Two products with the same price of Rp10 thousand, one has a poor quality and the other has a good quality, you must choose the good one, right?

The third thing that we often forget is timely delivery. If we have promised to serve meatballs for a meeting at 3 pm, then we must arrive on time at 3 pm. If the order is for 3 pm and we come at 7 pm, the meatballs are useless, right? It’s a must to be on time, on time delivery, very important. We should never be late in sending our products.

Second, I am glad that there are already 592 thousand customers in Banten, with how many trillions of money in circulation, Mr. Director? Rp9.6 trillion, this is a large amount of money. I remember that when PNM Mekaar was established in 2015-2016, it only had 400 thousand customers throughout Indonesia. Now, there are 15.2 million customers. So, you already have 15,200,000 customers, 15,200,000 customers, that’s a lot. Previously, the money in circulation was only Rp800 billion, Rp800 billion in 2015, now it is Rp244 trillion.

We have to be careful. It was previously Rp2 million. Is that correct, Mr. President Director, Rp2 million? It was gradually increasing, some are now at Rp5 million, some have reached Rp10 million. But what I want to convey, the most important thing is that we teach them to fish. Second, the most important thing is to build character, work ethic, discipline. If you finally elevate your level, you go to the bank to get credit, for example for Rp1 billion, you will have the discipline and work ethic. If you want to get Rp10 billion, you are already used to the work ethic and discipline. It will be taken into consideration, so this is building a character. And, I am happy that you have high enthusiasm for business. But has anyone here exported their products? Not yet, that’s okay. Exports don’t have to be big, a lot. Small amount of export is okay, but the most important thing is it has a good quality. No one?

Anyone selling food at home? Raise your hand for those who sell food at home. So many. I would like some of you to come forward. Just a moment, a moment, a moment, no ma’am, just a moment, I’ll choose one first and then you can go forward. Yes, I’d like to have someone who is so enthusiastic, full of spirit. The enthusiastic one, yes just one person. Who already sells online? Yes, that lady seems enthusiastic, I want those who come forward to be enthusiastic.

Dialogue with Mekaar customers

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Please introduce your name, ma’am.

Customer (Sri Superni)

My name is Mrs. Sri Superni.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Mrs. what?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Mrs. Sri Superni.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

How can I call you?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Mrs. Sri.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Mrs. Sri, what are you selling?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Chicken pecel.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

What is chicken pecel?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Chicken pecel, catfish pecel, uduk rice,

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Chicken pecel, catfish pecel, uduk rice,

Customer (Sri Superni)

Yes and satays.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

And satays. Selling at home?

Customer (Sri Superni)

At home, sir.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

At home. In a complex or in?

Customer (Sri Superni)

In a complex.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

In a complex. How much money can you get a day?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Sometimes Rp800 thousand.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Wow, it’s a lot.

Customer (Sri Superni)

Sometimes Rp700 thousand.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Oh, it’s a lot. Eight hundred a day, then it’s 24 million a month, the income is really high. How much profit do you get, may I know?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Around Rp250 or Rp200.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Rp200-250 thousand?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Yes, sir.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

For a day?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Yes, sir.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Then you can get 6-7.5 million a month?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Alhamdulillah.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

It’s a lot, a lot. How much do you take credit from Mekaar?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Rp6 million.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Do you pay the instalment weekly or fortnightly?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Fortnightly.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

For how much?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Rp175 (thousand).

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Oh, that’s very small, Rp175.

Customer (Sri Superni)

Yes, Sir.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Have you made a late payment?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Once.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Once only. That’s great, Mrs. Sri.

Customer (Sri Superni)

That was when I had to pay my child’s university tuition fee.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Only once, but did you always pay other instalments on time? Do you stick to the rules?

Customer (Sri Superni)

Yes, Sir, Inshaallah.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Now Pancasila. Do you memorize Pancasila?

Customer (Sri Superni)

I do, inshaallah, Sir.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Okay, please turn around, facing that way, Pancasila.

Customer (Sri Superni)

Pancasila

First, Belief in the one and only God

Second, Just and civilized humanity

Third, The unity of Indonesia

Fourth, Democracy guided by the inner wisdom… (incomplete and being helped by President Joko Widodo afterwards)

Fifth, Social justice for the whole of the people of Indonesia.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

When you are seated over there, everybody knows Pancasila, but when you come on stage standing next to me, all the memory is gone.

Customer (Sri Superni)

It’s true, Sir. I’ve tried to memorize it before.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Yes, don’t you think that Pancasila is easy to recite. When you get close to me, you become nervous and everything here is gone.

Please introduce yourself, Ma’am (dialogue with second customer).

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Okay Sir, my name is Nurmalinda, Nurmalinda.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Mrs. Nurmalinda. How can I call you?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Alin.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Mrs. Alin, not Mrs. Linda?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

No.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Not Mrs. Nurma?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

No.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Mrs. Alin?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Yes.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Mrs. Alin, how much have you taken from Mekaar?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Rp8 million.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Rp8 million? Okay. Is the instalment weekly or fortnightly? And how much is it?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Fortnightly.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Fortnightly.

Customer (Nurmalinda)

The payment is Rp215 thousand.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Rp215 thousand, okay. What product do you sell?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Seblak (a spicy cracker dish mixed with protein sources), Sir.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Seblak?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Yes.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Wow, it’s also seblak in Bekasi yesterday, it’s seblak again now.

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Yes, special food.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

I didn’t know what seblak was.

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Please drop in, Sir.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

They told me already in Bekasi. “Sir, seblak is this and that. Ohh now I know.” Seblak?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Yes.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Only seblak?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Seblak and boci.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

What is boci?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Boci cireng.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Boci cireng. What is cireng anyway?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Aci. Aci, sir, it’s cooked.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Aci? What is aci?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Cireng, oh no, I mean sago.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Sago? What do you make it into?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

You make dough from it, boil it, make round, fry it, add some stuffs like tofu, fried dumplings, kencur (aromatic ginger) pilus.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

I see. How much do you get every day?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Rp650 thousand per day.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

That’s quite a lot, a great deal.

Customer (Nurmalinda)

I have been selling it for almost four years.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Almost four years. Selling at home?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

At my house’s terrace.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

At the terrace and online?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Yes, online.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Which is bigger, online or in-home?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

In-home selling.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

In-home selling. What percentage do you get from the online selling?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Around 25 percent.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Around 25 percent, okay. Mrs. Alin, what would you suggest to all audiences here to sell very well?

Customer (Nurmalinda)

For me personally, as I am selling in home, we shouldn’t feel ashamed when we meet people. For example, when we meet people in the market, we have a conversation, give them our phone number, that’s very important as we sell only in home. “Can I have your number?” So, people will ask, “what do you sell? Oh, seblak? Can I get delivery order?” This will expand our network.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

OK, Mrs. Alin, Pancasila.

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Bismillahirrahmanirrahim, First, Belief in…

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

No, from the beginning. Pancasila, first.

Customer (Nurmalinda)

Pancasila

First, Belief in the one and only God

Second, Just and civilized humanity

Third, Just and civilized eh.. (mistakenly recited). The unity of Indonesia

Fourth, fourth, Democracy guided by the inner wisdom in the unanimity arising out of deliberations amongst representatives

Fifth, Social justice for the whole of the people of Indonesia.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Like I said, it was easy over there, but here, all your memory is gone, you don’t trust me. Well, thank you, ma’am. Would you like a bicycle? Here I give you a bicycle, take it please. This is very expensive. You can exchange it for a car. It’s not the bike, but the writing “a gift from President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo that makes is expensive.

Dialogue with Mekaar Customer ends.

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

That concludes my remarks on this auspicious occasion. Once again, have a good work ethic, have a discipline in paying the instalments on time and I pray that all of you here will be given the blessings of Allah SWT, so you can pay all the instalments, and make the maximum profit. I conclude.

Wassalaamu’alaikum warrahmatullaahi wabarakaatuh.

(AY/MUR)