Unspun

Jakarta Post reader Nyoman Suwela wrote a letter to the editor that was published on June 14. He was complaining about an antigraft television commercial (see Antigraft campaign has no brain) that made no sense, and was, in fact, nonsense.

I finally got round to seeing the commercial and couldn’t agree with him more. It always amazes me how government bodies end up spending huge amounts of money on commecials that are stupid and senseless. But in Indonesia, when things do not make sense it is time to ask the question: “where’s the money?”

More often than not, there is a perfectly logical reason why the advertisements are so bad: there is a “win-win” situation going on between the client (an official in the government body) and the agency (the owner of whom usually has very good or familial connections with the clients).

Below is Nyoman’s letter:

A new television advertisement, which is part of anti-corruption campaign launched by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and state broadcaster TVRI, makes fascinating viewing.

The ad shows a boy leaving for school without a shirt and saying farewell to his father. Noticing his son going to school unclad, the father asks the boy what he is doing and whether he is crazy. The son replies by saying that he does not want to wear clothes that were bought with money derived from corruption. Hearing his son’s reply, the father gets a heart attack. Watching his father dying, the son reacts by smiling.

What the campaign wants to achieve might be all well and good and the motivation should be hailed, but the way this message delivered is somewhat regrettable. How come a schoolboy goes to school without a shirt, just to show that he is against what his father is doing? Why does a son smile watching his father dying? There must be another way to deliver the message that is more ethical and intelligent; one that makes sense.

I do hope that my comment may be useful.

NYOMAN SUWELA
Singaraja, Bali