Magelang – Sholeh, the owner of a five-foot meatball cart in the Bandongan District, Magelang, was filled with joy. Because his food stall was visited by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto on Monday (29/1) afternoon.
His five-foot stall became a 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 29, Alhamdulillah, my stall was visited by unexpected guests, the President of Indonesia Jokowi and Prabowo, who came to my stall in Bandongan,” Sholeh said happily.
Sholeh was very grateful that the lunch with both of them went smoothly. According to him, Jokowi and Prabowo seemed to enjoy his meatball dishes with an added freshness of coconut water.
Previously, he admitted that he doubted his ability to prepare hundreds of meatball orders a day before Jokowi and Prabowo’s visit. In addition to preparing meatball dishes for both of them, he also made 400 portions to be distributed for free to the residents.
“The day before, the President’s security personnel came to me and asked for permission for the state guests,” Sholeh said.
“I asked myself if I could prepare it or not? Actually, I was doubtful, but I had to be optimistic and strong. It turns out everything went smoothly,” he continued.
Sholeh also mentioned that his family was very happy to take a photo with Jokowi and Prabowo. Moreover, he and his elementary school-aged child were very happy to have the opportunity to shake hands directly with Prabowo.
“I also shook hands with Mr. Prabowo. Here’s the photo. Alhamdulillah, it was unexpected,” Sholeh said.
He found Prabowo, who he met for the first time in person, to be very kind and friendly. “From my personal perspective, he’s good. Can’t be expressed in words. He even ate my meatballs himself,” he explained.
During the handshake moment, Prabowo wished for the success of Sholeh’s meatball business. “He said, ‘always success’ (from Prabowo),” Sholeh said.
He also prayed for Prabowo to lead the country so that everyone remains united.
“May Mr. Prabowo always be healthy and (hopefully) can lead this country to stay united in diversity,” 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 were seen wearing plain white shirts. (SENOPATI)
