Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim ended his first official visit to Indonesia on a high note, surrounded by friends and contacts across generations while in and out of office.
Following an official meeting with Indonesia's President Joko Widodo at the Bogor Palace this morning, Anwar was hosted by an "old friend" - Chairul Tanjung - chairperson of CT Corp, one of Indonesia's major conglomerates that include several media outlets.
Anwar was featured as a speaker at the CT Corp Leadership Forum hosted by Chairul at the Menara Bank Mega, Jakarta.
Chairul in his opening speech said he had personally witnessed Anwar's political career for over 30 years and across several stints in prison, along the way gaining invaluable experiences to share with Indonesia today.
"Anwar had throughout his journey remained consistent, believing in the ideals that he held until the day he became prime minister," said Chairul, who noted an overwhelming response from those in attendance.
Those in the front seats include a line-up of former and current ministers across several Indonesian presidents, united by their common interest in Anwar.
From Jokowi's cabinet, among those seen were Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto and Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno.
Since his arrival yesterday for a two-day official visit, Anwar had described Indonesia as a loyal friend who accepted him in times of hardship, a sentiment echoed by Jokowi, Chairul and once again reiterated to hundreds gathered in the audience today.
In his talk, Anwar further stressed on Malaysia's commitment to eradicate corruption and chart a new political landscape that is hoped to strengthen bilateral ties with other nations including Indonesia.
During the question and answer session hosted by Chairul, those who stood up to address Anwar include former Indonesian Intelligence Agency chief Abdullah Mahmud Hendropriyono.
Among issues raised in discussions during Anwar's visit include a focus on economic development and processes involved in the recruitment of Indonesian workers to Malaysia - a matter which had in the past triggered strained ties between the two neighbouring nations.
'Exorbitant costs to hire domestic workers'
At his final press conference alongside Foreign Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir and International Trades and Industry Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz, Anwar said the "exorbitant cost" to hire an Indonesian domestic worker - a segment which had recorded a series of high profile abuse cases - was partly due to the role of private agencies in the recruitment and placement process.
"(This is) because of the dependency on agents. We have to do away with it partly.
"That's why we talk about digitalisation. Why must you go through that process of physical interviews when we can, not entirely but to a large extent, do away with them (agents)," he said.
"We all have domestic workers, we know the process, causing delays and so much hardship for the poor. That’s why netizens here get agitated for good reason, because their people are being treated in that manner.
"The fact is that it is so difficult (to hire) and they charge an exorbitant rate. We need to cleanse the system," Anwar added.
Anwar, his wife Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and the Malaysian delegation departed for Kuala Lumpur this evening at 6pm local time.
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