BOGOR – Indonesian military figure, who once served as the Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Air Force (KSAU), Marshal TNI (Ret.) Chappy Hakim, conducted an inspirational class session for the students of SMART Ekselensia Indonesia (EI) on Monday (18/12/2023).
On this occasion, the close friend of Parni Hadi shared tips on becoming a person of strong character and conviction as an Indonesian. With 30 years of experience in the air force, including serving as the KSAU from 2002 to 2005, Chappy’s stories were truly inspirational.
He believes that diligence and hard work are the keys to success in Indonesia. Why? Because generally, people are lazy. All desires must be achieved through hard work. Everything has its stages, only then can people reach their goals. This was the initial message he conveyed in front of the students and teachers of SMART EI, attended by the Initiator and Chairman of the Dompet Dhuafa Board of Trustees Parni Hadi, Chairman of the Dompet Dhuafa Foundation Rahmad Riyadi, and Head of the Lembaga Pengembangan Insani (LPI) Dompet Dhuafa Mulyadi Saputra.
As a comparison, Chappy also shared stories about the character of people in foreign countries from his visits to various nations, from nearby Singapore to America. From his experiences, he realized that a lack of discipline, punctuality, and cleanliness is Indonesia’s greatest weakness.
“When I first became the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, there was a demand for a program to guide the future of the Air Force. In 2002, we were lacking in budget. But, I still had to create a program. I had to make a strategic planning program. So, I initiated three things. The first was discipline, the second punctuality, and the third cleanliness,” he recounted.
The first year this program was implemented, Chappy saw many changes and improvements in each of his members. In addition, aviation is closely related to technology. While technology will lead society to a nation’s civilization, it cannot be achieved without strong character.
Thus, there are three key points that everyone can apply to advance the nation’s character. The nation’s character is formed starting from each individual within it, firstly through personal character. Secondly, every citizen must be able to foster self-discipline. Thirdly, this leads to the formation of responsibility in each individual.
“By implementing discipline, punctuality, and cleanliness, many significant changes will occur,” said Chappy.
Another message Chappy conveyed to the SMART students was to remain steadfast in facing every problem. This can be achieved by always showing strength and not displaying weakness in front of others. He believes that whatever is determined by someone will eventually be realized.
Chappy likens the human brain to a computer. When someone instills a program in their mind, combined with determination and hard work, the programmed desire will be realized. Just like his story, he had the dream of becoming a civilian pilot. He applied but never received a call. While waiting for the call, a friend invited him to apply to the Air Force Academy.
At the time, he was not interested, only wanting to accompany his friend, but by divine decree, he was accepted into the Air Force Academy. While serving as a TNI pilot, he also had the opportunity to fly civilian flights. Thus, his original dream of becoming a civilian pilot was realized.
Next, Parni added a message to the SMART Ekselensia students: in addition to discipline, they must also have a volunteering spirit. This point is crucial considering volunteering is the essence of Dompet Dhuafa itself. So, when these students succeed in what Dompet Dhuafa hopes for them, which is breaking the chain of poverty, their success will always be accompanied by a spirit of sincerity.
“Dompet Dhuafa was initiated with volunteering and sincerity,” Parni firmly stated.
On the same occasion, Mulyadi explained that Dompet Dhuafa’s education program has been able to produce strategic human resources, such as doctors, PhDs, masters, and others. They are children who have successfully broken the chain of poverty in their families. The Inspiration Class by LPI invites figures from academic experts, professionals, to entrepreneurs to share inspiration, motivation, and anything to improve the students’ self-quality. So that the students can see their future more clearly and visualize their future prospects.
Meanwhile, Rahmad Riyadi stated that through this inspirational class activity, Dompet Dhuafa, along with the inspirators, can create good networks and perspectives. Through this opportunity, students will be able to learn a lot. So they can measure success from the experiences of the figures they have met.
“You all will become the nation’s leaders with commendable morals and high ethics. Indonesia is somewhat lacking in leaders with high ethics and morals. Therefore, I hope the lessons we teach can be an inspiration for you,” Rahmad advised. (Dompet Dhuafa / Muthohar)