Indonesia Highlights: Indonesian Rock Star Abdee Slank Appointed As Telkom Commissioner | Indonesia Reissues Controversial AstraZeneca Vaccine Batch | Indonesian Counterterrorist Police Nab 10 Suspect

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Indonesian President Joko Widodo is courting controversy, after he authorized Minister of State-Owned Enterprises Erick Thohir to name one of his closest allies in the arts as a Commissioner in state-owned telecommunications company Telkom.

The government also put AstraZeneca’s CTMAV 547 Covid-19 vaccine batch back in circulation, less than two weeks after the vaccine consignment was implicated in four deaths.

And Indonesia’s Densus 88 counterterrorist police have arrested 10 suspected terrorists in Papua Province’s Merauke Regency, before the militants can attack houses of worship in the area. This and more on Indonesia Highlights:

KOMPAS.com/TRI SUSANTO SETIAWAN Abdee Slank at a launch for the CD album Asian Games: Energy Of Asia (20/7/2018).

Indonesian Rock Star Abdee Slank Appointed As Telkom Commissioner

Indonesian Minister for State Owned Enterprises Erick Thohir might win kudos for overhauling state-owned companies.

Yet the former Inter Milan boss raised eyebrows when he appointed Abdi Negara Nurdin aka Abdee Negara or Abdee Slank, the lead guitarist of Indonesian rock band Slank, as an Independent Commissioner of state-owned telecommunications company Telkom Indonesia.

Erick slated the 52 year-old into Telkom’s board to serve under former Minister of Research and Technology Bambang Brodjonegoro, who was named Telkom’s President-Director.

Abdee will serve alongside fellow Independent Commissioner Bono Daru Adji, as well as new Telkom Commissioner Isa Rachmatarwata and Arya Sinulingga.

The backlash against the musical outsider came immediately, including from opposition parliamentarian Amin Ak from the opposition Social Justice Party or PKS.

“[Erick Thohir’s] consideration in appointing [Abdee] was more about his contribution to President Jokowi’s successful presidential runs [in 2014 and 2019],” he said.