19 / 76
17
august
, 2018
Syafruddin, who is deputy chairman of the
Indonesian Mosque Council under Vice President
Jusuf Kalla, allocates his time to boost the morale
of athletes and coaches amid his busy schedule as
deputy chief of the National Police. He spared time for
this exclusive interview.
Excerpts:
Why did you decide to locate the office of the chef de
mission at the Police Academy?
Just for practical reasons. If it was going to be at the
Gelora Bung Karno Sports Complex, we would have
had to start from zero. It would have taken long to get
the necessary funding. [At the Police Academy], we
already have internet access, CCTV connected to all
the sports venues, and personnel we can deploy. Time
is short and we have to move fast.
Why did you agree to lead the athletes? Are you
not too busy in your post as deputy National Police
chief?
It’s a long story. During the 2017 Southeast Asian
Games in Kuala Lumpur, Erick Thohir called and
asked me to join as a member of the observer team.
But to make the story short, upon a recommendation
by Tono Suratman, who was chief of KONI
[National Sports Committee] at the time, I was
assigned because I was already familiar with sports
committees. I was head of KONI’s committees
department.
During the Asian Games preparation meetings,
they unanimously appointed me. I did not
immediately accept. I thought I would be too busy
during the election year assisting the National Police
chief. I recommended other names that could be
summitted to the president and vice president. But
then I received a call. It was a call to duty by the
national leadership. I couldn’t refuse. I then informed
my superior about the appointment.
What was the very first thing you did?
I immediately consolidated KONI, because it is an
institution that represents athletes. I then called on
all stakeholders to revive the spirit of struggle. At that
time, there was hardly any encouragement. Why was
the nation lacking interest in the Asian Games? Our
athletes seemed to be lacking motivation because of
poor performances in the past. Was it because they
did not receive adequate recognition or reward? These
were the questions.
Rewarding is enough, but no significant
achievements. Our organization has always been seen
by the public as poor and lacking performance. This
time, we are hosting the Asian Games. We have to
move fast. I had to go here and there to resolve issues.
I prefer to be a facilitator to move forward.
Did you apply pressure to get the sports venues
completed on time?
Hahaha. Yes, because as chef de mission it is in my
interest that the venues be completed on time, so
the athletes can try it out and get the feel. As the
host, we regard that as our privilege. If we are late
[in completing the venues], we would not have that
advantage over athletes from other countries coming
to compete in the Games.
You pushed them hard, did they not complain?
No. They enjoyed the fact that I was pushing hard.
The ministers were happy. I also chased the youth
and sports minister to make sure that funds are
guaranteed. Then all of us became one compact
team – all the stakeholders, ministers, KONI and
organizers. Until now, with a united spirit we move
forward and never retreat. Our main aim is to perform
and provide the best service during Asian Games 2018.
You are known for your ‘embracing but consistent’
leadership style in the police. What kind of
leadership style do you employ as leader of the
national sports contingent?
I am not foreign to the present contingent. I trained
in this field when I was at KONI. Some of the
present coaches are my former athletes. Some are
still senior athletes. That enables me to interact
and communicate with them. I admit though, that
I am using a little of the police leadership style.
Consistency and swift action. How to motivate,
decide, or make friends. There are times when we
need to be really tough and times we must be soft.
I always tell the athletes and coaches that there
should be no distance between them. Although a
coach may never have been a champion, he is a senior
and has more experience than even the best athlete.
His advice should never be ignored; the same goes
for the athletes. A coach should never belittle a junior
athlete. All must become one, united in the same goal
to win. I hope with this approach, 75 percent of all
the problems will be solved and victory will be in our
hands.
You have been an athlete since you were 7 years old?
Since I was little, I was raised to be tough. There were
three activities I liked: swimming, horse riding and
sepak takraw
. Because our home was near the sea, I
swam every day. My parents had many horses and a
horseracing track. So I was trained to become a jockey
when I was 7 years old. This is why I sometimes use
the horse philosophy – to lead, one has to be in front
of the competitors.
I will refuse. I am a general
and I can’t be there. I can’t
be in practical politics.
I will only be concentrating
on peace and solving conflict
in the Islamic world as I said
earlier.