Several sub-district heads and judges in the 2026 Benyamin S Award\n(BSA) shared their impressions after taking part in the final round at\nthe Ascott Menteng Hotel in Central Jakarta on Thursday (15\nOctober).<\/p>\n
Ali Syahidin, head of Sukabumi Utara Urban Village in West Jakarta,\nsaid that despite feeling nervous, he remained enthusiastic and\noptimistic.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am quite optimistic, because I am not representing the urban\nvillage alone, but 47,000 residents of Sukabumi Utara,\u201d Ali said after\nleaving the judging room.<\/p>\n
Ali said residents had entrusted him with a message: Sukabumi Utara\nis currently transforming into the Sukabumi Utara Global Cultural\nTourism Village. For him, the BSA was not an end in itself, but a\nstimulus or catalyst.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe BSA is just a stimulus to encourage residents to work harder and\nwith greater enthusiasm to create a clean environment, a comfortable and\nbeautiful atmosphere, beautiful scenery, and prosperity for the\ncommunity,\u201d Ali said.<\/p>\n
Henny Mahrojah, head of Kebon Sirih Urban Village in Central Jakarta,\nalso spoke of her optimism and nerves. She said she had felt somewhat\nnervous before presenting to the judges.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore the presentation, I was a little nervous \u2013 that\u2019s only human.\nBut when I took my first step and offered my greeting, the atmosphere\nchanged, and my enthusiasm immediately surged,\u201d Henny said.<\/p>\n
After her presentation, Henny said she felt relieved. She added that\nthe judges had given her several points to consider regarding future\nimprovements to the neighbourhood.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe important feedback was that we were challenged to find ways to\nmake our area healthy and beautiful,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the judges shared their impressions after assessing\npresentations by the ten BSA finalists. Wicaksono Sarosa, director and\nchief knowledge officer at Ruang Waktu, said the finalist sub-district\nheads had prepared their presentations well.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome were very good and impressive, while others were still reading\nfrom their notes. But overall, they were well prepared and followed the\nguidance,\u201d Wicaksono said.<\/p>\n
He also pointed to a particular challenge for the judges: finding\npotential or problems that had not been covered in the sub-district\nheads\u2019 presentations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to find out what particular issues or potential\nopportunities have not yet been revealed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Urban planning analyst Yayat Supriyatna focused on the sub-district\nheads\u2019 willingness to take risks and innovate.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhether an area progresses or falls behind depends on leadership.\nToday, we are looking at whether they truly have the courage to innovate\nor simply follow the rules,\u201d Yayat said.<\/p>\n
In the final round of the 2026 Benyamin S Award, Yayat sought to\nassess how willing the sub-district heads were to mobilise residents.\nThe hope, he said, was that change would be driven not by the power of\nofficials, but by the community itself.<\/p>\n
After the initial selection rounds, festival and final presentations,\nthe Benyamin S Award will hold its grand finale on 30 October.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/sub-district-heads-and-judges-reflect-after-benyamin-s-award-final-1792061475", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }