A teenage TikTok celebrity, who most of us might have never heard of but is apparently very famous among young Indonesians, has publicly apologized after receiving backlash for throwing a birthday party amid tighter COVID restrictions in the country.
A user who goes by @angelinngel is among the most vocal critics of the TikToker in question, identified by her initials JP. As seen in @angelinngel’s series of TikToks, JP recently held her 18th birthday bash at a hotel ballroom, attended by dozens of her fellow TikTok celebrities.
According to reports, this pink-themed birthday party was held at a hotel ballroom in Bekasi, West Java about a week ago. The young influencer wore a pink long dress that seems to have been inspired by Disney princesses.
“Those who attended [the party] were [TikTok celebrities] with millions of followers. When they should have given good examples, knowing that PPKM is currently being imposed, they instead posted [videos of the event] proudly,” @angelinngel said in a TikTok, which has been viewed more than 13.4 million times.
PPKM refers to the Enforcement of Restrictions on Public Activities, a set of COVID-related restrictions to curb rising coronavirus transmission in the country.
“Please, COVID-19 Task Force, do something about them! How can you not take action on people like them?” @angelinggel added.
Knowing full well that her page would be swarmed by JP’s fans, @angelinngel — who has more than 120,000 followers — also posted a number of TikToks replying to comments defending JP as well as those that accused her of leeching JP off for clout.
@angelinngel responded by saying that she only wanted “justice,” pointing to less privileged people who have been the target of uneven enforcement of PPKM and were sanctioned for simply trying to make a living. She gave one example of a bubur ayam (chicken porridge) seller in West Java who had to pay an IDR5 million (US$345) fine for hawking while PPKM was enforced.
Following the widespread backlash from the public, JP, who has 15.6 million followers on TikTok and 3.6 million followers on Instagram, has posted an apology video.
“I’d like to apologize to everyone for my carelessness and negligence in holding a birthday party amid the ongoing PPKM. This will be a lesson for me from now on, and there is nothing to be justified from this event,” JP said in her most recent post on the platform.
“So I’d like to apologize to everyone, sincerely and from the bottom of my heart, without any coercion.”
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