Prabowo at the 100th Anniversary Reception of Pondok Gontor

He emphasized that sympathy alone is not enough.

In educational environments like Gontor, he urged kyai, ulama, educators, and especially the younger generation to let this situation motivate them to study hard and help build a strong Indonesia.

“I believe this should encourage all of us, especially you, the kyai, ulama, and educators at institutions like Gontor. This should trigger a strong will,” he stated.

“A will to study diligently. A will to build a strong Indonesia, because a weak nation will be trampled by others,” Prabowo added.

Kisses the Quran

Prabowo was seen kissing the Quran gifted by the leadership of Pondok Modern Darussalam Gontor.

This moment happened after KH Hasan Abdullah Sahal concluded his speech before Prabowo.

Hasan then stepped down from the stage and presented a book titled Hadiah Gontor untuk Indonesia to Prabowo.

Other Gontor leaders also handed over a Mushaf Quran produced by Gontor students and printed by the pesantren's independent printing press.

Prabowo accepted the Mushaf and raised it to his lips to kiss it.

In his speech, Hasan noted that Gontor contributes to Indonesia through its alumni serving in various fields.

However, Hasan apologized for not detailing all contributions due to time constraints.

“This time, please forgive us; we can only present a glimpse, Sir. The contributions of our alumni to the nation are many; we cannot mention them one by one in this short time,” Hasan said.

Don’t Trust Foreign Agents

Prabowo warned the students of Pondok Modern Darussalam Gontor not to easily trust information circulating on social media.

He also urged them not to believe those he called foreign agents, who have money to pay social media buzzers and manipulate online discussions.

“Don't trust those I call foreign agents. They have money, they can pay buzzers, they manipulate social media, be careful!” Prabowo warned.