The common belief in Indonesia is that being a ‘pejabat’ (government official) entitles one to a life of luxury, and that those who don’t are rare exceptions to the rule. That’s why any story about government officials living modest, ordinary lives becomes a rather big deal.
Former Justice and Human Rights Deputy Minister Denny Indrayana has recently been receiving a lot of praise from Indonesian netizens after it was revealed that he works part time as a driver in Melbourne, Australia, in between his day job as a lecturer at the University of Melbourne’s law school.
On Saturday, a delegation from the Tourism Ministry arrived in Melbourne and were surprised to find Denny Indrayana picking them up from the airport in a white van. The story of the encounter was covered by Detik and became popular after being tweeted by former Constitutional Court Chief Mahfud MD.
My friend Denny is doing it (his part time job as a driver) calmly and gallantly. In developed countries, it’s common for ministers and senators to ride the public bus.
Denny himself confirmed that he occasionally drives passengers using his friend’s van in order to earn extra money on the side.
I’m helping out a friend who owns a travel company. It’s halal income, so why not? It also so happens that now is the semester break on campus.
Many netizens praised Denny for showing the humility to work as a driver, despite being a law professor at a prestigious university and previously being a deputy minister for Indonesia.
Denny Indrayana was the second-in-command at the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights from 2011-2014, during former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s second term. He is, however, still under investigation by the National Police for his alleged role in a suspected passport application payment corruption case while he was serving as deputy minister.
