Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Cabinet Secretary Dipo Alam's derogatory attacks on religious leaders and media outlets were aimed at diverting the public's attention from the nation's real problems, top Islamic figures said on Friday.
Dipo this week described religious leaders critical of the government's performance, including in its task to uphold religious tolerance, as "scavenging black crows in the skin of white doves."
Last week he called on government institutions to boycott media organizations that portrayed Indonesia as a "messy and dark" country.
And on Tuesday, he accused TVOne, Metro TV and Media Indonesia newspaper of "spreading hatred" toward the government through their critical news reports.
Religious leaders have fired back, urging people not to be distracted from the urgent problems facing the country.
Din Syamsuddin, chairman of Indonesia's second-largest Islamic organization, Muhammadiyah, said he was aware Dipo's attacks had been partially directed at him, but said he was not one to take them seriously.
Din further speculated that Dipo's barbs were part of the government's efforts to distract attention from its continuing failure to fulfill its promises.
"I urge the people not to turn their attention away from the government's many failures, such as poor law enforcement, the Bank Century scandal and the worsening welfare of the people. [Dipo's comments] are an attempt by [President] SBY to distract the public from these matters," Din said. "It is best if [Susilo Bambang] Yudhoyono concentrates on resolving these issues. We should not dodge real problems by turning them into a personal issue with Islamic leaders.
"The president should consider dismissing Dipo. If he does not, it means the president agrees with him, as well as the silencing of mass media and any healthy criticism aimed toward him," Din added.
Hasyim Muzadi, chairman of the country's largest Islamic organization, Nahdlatul Ulama, said it was wrong for Dipo to blame Islamic leaders for voicing the public's growing criticism of the government.
"If our method of delivering the criticism was wrong, then that is merely a matter of perception. It does not mean the substance of our criticism was incorrect. I do not know whether this latest statement issued by Dipo [against Muslim leaders] was initiated by Dipo or whether the government itself had a hand in this," Hasyim said.
Meanwhile, Hamka Haq, chairman of Baitul Muslimin Indonesia, said that rather than issuing insulting comments about Islamic clerics, it was better for the government to pay more attention to settling the myriad problems faced by Indonesia, including the recent string of violent attacks conducted in the name of religion.