By the New Order, he was falsely blamed for inciting the 27 July Incident in the storming of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) office and was later sentenced to 13 years in prison.

He began to pay attention to the poverty that ensnared the lower class when he found his childhood caregiver committed suicide due to immense debt.

Shortly after the PRD's declaration, state troops and hired thugs on 27 July 1996 attacked pro-democracy activists during a protest in Central Jakarta, killing at least five people.

As a result Budiman was used as a scapegoat by the New Order government and was accused of being the mastermind for supposedly orchestrating the month-long Free Speech.

On 5 August 1996, Lieutenant General Syarwan Hamid claimed there were "indications" that Budiman's father was a former member of the outlawed Indonesian Communist Party.

Due to the victory of the democracy movement, Budiman only served 3.5 years after being granted amnesty by President Abdurrahman Wahid on December 10, 1999.

[21] In the 2009‒2019 period, Budiman served as a member of the House of Representatives (DPR-RI) from PDI Perjuangan (from Central Java Electoral District VIII: Banyumas Regency and Cilacap Regency) and sat in Commission II in charge of domestic government, regional autonomy, state apparatus, and agrarian affairs; and was also the Deputy Chairman of the Special Committee for the Village Bill.

[22] At the international level, Budiman is actively involved as a member of the Steering Committee of the Network of Social Democracy in Asia.

The realization of Parade Nusantara (2009) under the leadership of Sudir Santosa, where Budiman Sudjatmiko was also present as a coach, made the push to realize this law even stronger, culminating in September to December 2011.

[23] Finally, due to the pressure, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono issued an presidential decree on the Village Bill in January 2012.

The House of Representatives then formed a Special Committee on the Village Bill led by Chairman Akhmad Muqowam (PPP), and vice-chairmen Budiman Sujatmiko (PDI-P), Khatibul Umam Wiranu (Democrat) and Ibnu Munzir (Golkar).

This community consists of academics, engineers, researchers, programmers, artists, doctors and others related to quantum computing, genetic engineering, precision agriculture, artificial intelligence, drones, automation, renewable energy sources, education, talent management, and socio-culture to trigger Indonesia's leap towards Industrial Revolution 4.0.

This book is the true story of Budiman Sudjatmiko's long and winding journey to find answers and fight for his dreams that were embedded from an early age.