Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Some time ago, a video clip of a cultural lecture by Emha Ainun Najib alias Cak Nun went viral on social media. In the video, Cak Nun mentions several people as Pharaoh, Haman, and Qorun.
“Because Indonesia is ruled by a Pharaoh whose name is Jokowi, by Qorun whose name is Anthony Salim and 10 dragons. Then Haman whose name is Luhut,” said Cak Nun in the video clip, quoted on Saturday (21/1/2023).
“Our country was completely controlled by Pharaoh, Haman and Qorun. That’s the whole system, all the instruments, all the political tools they all have in their hands. From the money, the system, to the authority, to whatever,” he added.
One of the statements that caught the public’s attention was Cak Nun who mentioned Anthony Salim and the existence of 10 dragons, not the nine dragons which were quite popular.
It should be noted, Anthony Salim is the owner of the Salim Group which is known for having a food business that dominates the Indonesian market. Some of the well-known brands are Indomie, Supermi, Sarimi, Bogasari, Bimoli, to Indomaret.
Therefore, it is not surprising that Salim has assets of US $ 7.5 billion or around IDR 113 trillion (exchange rate of IDR 15,075 / US $). This wealth figure has succeeded in making him the fifth richest person in Indonesia’s version Forbes.
The business he started was inherited from his father, a big Indonesian businessman named Liem Sioe Liong or Sudono Salim.
According to Richard Borsuk and Nancy Chng in Liem Sioe Liong’s Salim Group: The Business Pillar of Suharto’s Indonesia (2014), Salim started a business in the goods import sector and became a supplier of military goods.
Thanks to this, Liem became acquainted with Indonesia’s second former president, Suharto. His familiarity with Suharto brought blessings to Liem because there was often a symbiotic mutualism. Suharto, who protected Salim, got money from his increasingly prosperous business.
The Salim-Soeharto relationship is an example of how the relationship between rulers and entrepreneurs, namely the symbiosis of mutualism which later became a common pattern during the New Order era. According to Sri Bintang Pamungkas in Change Regime Change System in 2014, it was this symbiosis of mutualism that gave birth to the term ‘9 dragons’.
The ‘9 dragons’ is a term pinned by the media to refer to businessmen who controlled Indonesia’s economy during the New Order era. This is not a business group or organization so there are no definite members.
Most of them only guess about the members of the ‘9 dragons’. However, several other names, such as Aguan are also referred to as the ‘9 dragons’ group. The phrase ‘mastering the economy’ refers to the fact that the magnitude of the business octopus of entrepreneurs has an impact on Indonesian society.
Even though the new order collapsed, the term ‘9 dragons’ still survives. In various media the names Robert Budi Hartono, Rusdi Kirana, Sofjan Wanandi, Jacob Soetoyo, James Riady, Tommy Winata, Anthony Salim, and Dato’ Sri Tahir appear, who are referred to as the ‘9 Dragons’.
Some of them run their parents’ businesses, such as James Riady (owner of the Lippo Group founded by Mochtar Riady) and Anthony Salim.
However, Cak Nun called it Qorun or Qarun. Qarun is actually one of the stories explained in the Quran.
In Zeki Saritoprak’s study in The Story of Qarun (Korah) in the Qur’an and Its Importance for Our Times (Poverty and Wealth in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam (2016), The story begins when Musa’s brother, Qarun, supports Pharaoh’s rule. Thanks to Pharaoh’s support, he got a lot of wealth and became rich in an instant.
However, when Qarun became wealthy, he became arrogant. Long story short, God was angry and sank into the ground along with all his property.
“Today, one could argue that for human development and good living conditions, a certain pursuit of wealth is necessary. […] By placing Qarun’s example, we are reminded that wealth is a vehicle for goodness and that burden can lead its owner astray,” wrote Zeki Saritoprak.
Cak Nun’s words were just personal opinion and speculation. In fact, the people who belong to the ‘9 dragons’ do not play politics and many also focus on philanthropic activities.
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