VP Kalla to deny any hoax about himself

Vice President M. Jusuf Kalla has said that he will deny any false information, or hoax, about him as it will not only affect him but also the public, considering his position as one of the countrys leaders.

"For me personally, if I happen to come across any false information about myself, I will deny it," he said, after opening the 2017 World Press Freedom Day in the Jakarta Convention Centre, on Wednesday.

The massive circulation of non-credible information has become one of the issues that had been discussed during the 2017 Worlds Press Freedom Day. Kalla said that he believed in the importance of self-censorship by the media in order to maintain its credibility.

"As we had discussed last week, there should be an internal censor for these issues, and hoax should no longer be spread further," he remarked.

Kalla added that he does not pay attention to any false information regarding him, as he rarely goes online on social media platforms. However, as the vice president, he believed that those inauthentic news stories will have an impact on the general public.

"I do not like to read very much, and I have no time to read such kind of news," he reiterated.

On the other hand, President Joko Widodo has been rather up-to-date with news as he reads them on his own. Hence, he is aware of the kind of information that is circulating around the media, he explained.

"Therefore, be careful when you think of creating a hoax, because it is very likely for the president to read it, as he carries his own iPad with him to read wherever he goes," he added.

A short while ago, Kalla had denied a false information that he had commented on the large number of flowers that had been sent to Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (Ahok) and Vice Governor Gatot Saiful Djarot, in which he was quoted to have said that the money used to send those flowers could have been used for those in need.

Kalla had denied the comment while attending the Anti-Hoax Journalist Network declaration in Jakarta on April 28.

"I was shocked when I read it, because I had not given any such comments in reality. I had never said anything about those flower arrangements," he revealed in the Vice Presidential Offices in Jakarta on April 28.

Source: ANTARA