By: Prabowo Subianto [taken from the Book: Military Leadership Notes from Experience Chapter I: Exemplary Leaders of The Indonesian Armed Forces]
Pak Yogie was indeed like most of the ‘45 generation. His face was sympathetic. He had sharp eyes and a very confident attitude. He was very disciplined and very erudite. He spoke numerous foreign languages fluently, and of course, he was very patriotic.
The key value I learned from the ’45 generation was the unconditional love of the homeland. They were also full of confidence because they managed to repel the invaders.
On my first meeting with him, I was impressed that he reminded me, or warned me, to always respect both of my parents. He was devout and a regular at his mosque. He was the first to actively curtail some of the unruly behaviour in the Red Beret Corps.
I got to know Pak Yogie Suardi Memet when I graduated from commando training at the Special Forces Education and Training Center (PUSDIKLATPASSUS), Batujajar. I was then Second Lieutenant. After graduating, I reported to the KOPASSANDHA Commander at that time, Brigadier General Yogie Suardi Memet.
Although his stature was not very tall, his physical appearance was very attractive. He was very neat, with short hair, a well-trimmed moustache and a perfectly fitting uniform. Not even a single centimetre of fat was visible. He liked to roll his sleeve to show his large biceps and triceps. He is firm yet sympathetic.
He was typical of the ‘45 generation, exuding full confidence after defeating the foreign invaders and showing strong, unconditional love of the homeland. A patriot. He was also very disciplined and erudite, mastering various foreign languages.
When I first met him, I was impressed that he reminded me, or rather warned me, to always respect both of my parents.
He was deeply religious and a regular at his mosque. It was he who began to eradicate the ‘vices’ among the Red Beret Corps.
At that time, drinking culture was rife in the Corps. There was an ‘expectation’ that soldiers who were good in combat had to be also good at drinking alcohol and excel in other ‘mischief’.
Interestingly, if he used an official car, he would not allow his wife to sit in front, even if it is empty. Back then, the KOPASSANDHA Commander’s official car was a canvass top Toyota Land Cruiser. In his view, the official car is for the commanders, not their wife. This is the kind of example that defines the ’45 generation.
Pak Yogie S. Memet was the former Battalion Commander of 330 Kujang I Siliwangi. His unit captured Kahar Muzakar in South Sulawesi in a DI/ TII crackdown operation under the leadership of Infantry Colonel Andi Muhammad Yusuf, Commander of Territorial Command XIV/Hasanuddin.
He was not a Military Academy graduate. When Indonesia had just declared its independence, the country had yet to have a military academy. There was only an army officer training program called P3AD in Bandung. This was where he graduated from. Besides Yogie S. Memet, other well-known P3AD alumni include General L.B. Moerdani and Lieutenant General Dading Kalbuadi.