What the Philippines can do, we can do better — at least in terms of literally lifting and moving a house.
From Coconuts Manila
Out of TikTok comes this incredible clip courtesy of @_agushulu_. With 5.8 million views as of this article’s publication, it shows dozens of men from Wajo District in Makassar, South Sulawesi carrying a house (which is bigger than the one in Coconuts Manila’s story — just sayin’) to a new location in true gotong royong fashion.
@_agushulu_ #wajo #india #meresahkan #viralwajo ♬ Parah Ini – Embun Senja
Gotong royong is the spirit of mutual assistance that is not only a buzzword for politicians come election season, but is also alive and well particularly in traditional communities like the one depicted in the video.
It’s not yet clear why they had to move the house, but the uploader jokingly wrote in the caption that the homeowner “did not want to be in the same village as Syarifa.”
In case you’re not well versed in the viral happenings of Indonesia, Syarifa is a young woman from Wajo who has recently shot to fame after she was pursued by an Indian man named Asib Ali Bhore. The story goes that Bhore and Syarifa met online and routinely communicated via WhatsApp for a year. Bhore fell in love and wired IDR9 million (US$591) to Syarifa to prove his dedication to her — even though she said she didn’t ask for the money.
Bhore last month traveled from India to Wajo to propose to Syarifa, but was turned down by her family as their daughter is being arranged for marriage to another man. They offered to return Bhore’s money, but he refused and is still keen on marrying Syarifa. Though he has yet to get his wish, Bhore is at least getting his 15 minutes of fame in Indonesia, having been invited to several talk shows on national TV.
