Jakarta (ANTARA) - Commander of the Presidential Security Force (Paspampres), Major General Achiruddin, clarified that his officers did not hit a resident who took a selfie with President Joko Widodo during his visit to Samarinda, East Kalimantan.
Achiruddin made the statement in response to a video on social media depicting a young male on the receiving end of a blow after approaching the president for a selfie following the National Quran Competition (MTQ) opening ceremony on September 8.
According to the written statement received here on Tuesday, Achiruddin remarked that security officers deployed at the opening ceremony were from Paspampes as well as other security agencies.
Nonetheless, he expected residents to understand and abide by security procedures during the president's presence and refrain from acting suspiciously or aggressively, which might be misinterpreted as a threat.
"If residents want to have a photo with the president, do not act too aggressively. The president himself is welcome to photo requests from residents," the Paspampres commander explained.
Meanwhile, Deputy for Protocol, Press, and Media of the Presidential Secretariat Yusuf Permana stated that his side had engaged in communication with Paspampres over the incident.
Paspampres clarified to the secretariat that their officers were not involved in the incident, Permana remarked.
In the video that became viral on social media, the young male was seen approaching the president who was about to enter his presidential car and successfully captured a selfie before retreating.
He was immediately rebuked by a security officer who told him not to trespass the security details.
The man was then seen being hit in the stomach by the officer and was visibly in great pain. However, the man could not ascertain the unit of the officer who hit him.
