Magelang – Sholeh, the owner of a street stall selling meatball in Bandongan District, Magelang, was filled with happiness. This was because his stall was visited by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto on Monday (1/29) afternoon.
His street stall became the stopping place for Jokowi and Prabowo to eat meatballs together after attending the inauguration of Graha Utama at the Military Academy (Akmil) Magelang.
“Today, on January 29th, Alhamdulillah, my stall was visited by unexpected guests, the President of Indonesia, Mr. Jokowi, and Mr. Prabowo, who came to my stall in Bandongan,” said Sholeh happily.
Sholeh was very grateful that the event of eating together with both of them at his place went smoothly. According to him, Jokowi and Prabowo seemed to really enjoy his meatball dish with a refreshing addition of coconut water.
Initially, he admitted that he doubted his ability to prepare hundreds of portions of meatball a day before the visit of Jokowi and Prabowo. In addition to preparing the meatball dish for both of them, he also made 400 portions to be distributed for free to the residents.
“The day before, the Presidential Security Detail came to me and asked for permission for a state visit,” Sholeh recounted.
“I asked myself, can I prepare it or not? Actually, I was hesitant, but I had to be optimistic and strong. It turns out that everything can run smoothly now,” he continued.
Sholeh also told that his family was very happy to be able to take a photo together with Jokowi and Prabowo. Moreover, he and his elementary school-aged son were very happy to have the opportunity to shake hands directly with Prabowo.
“I also got to shake hands with Mr. Prabowo. Here is the photo. Alhamdulillah, I didn’t expect this at all,” said Sholeh.
He assessed that Prabowo, who he met for the first time in person, was very kind and friendly. “From my personal point of view, he is kind. It can’t be put into words. He can even eat my meatballs himself,” he explained.
Sholeh revealed that during the handshake moment, Prabowo wished him success in his meatball business that he has been running until now. “He said, ‘success always’ (from Prabowo),” said Sholeh.
He also prayed that Prabowo would be able to lead this country so that all parties can remain united.
“Mr. Prabowo, always be healthy and (hopefully) can lead this country to stay united in its diversity, ‘Bhinneka Tunggal Ika’,” he said.
At the location, not only Jokowi and Prabowo were present, but also a number of artists and social media influencers such as Raffi Ahmad, Nagita Slavina, Atta Halilintar, Ria Ricis, Lula Lahfah, Rachel Vennya, Salim Nauderer, Tara Budiman, Christian Bong, Celine Evangelista, and Aan Story. They all appeared to be wearing plain white shirts. (SENOPATI).
