50 Principal Positions in Mataram Remain Vacant, Here's Why

More than 50 schools, from primary to junior secondary level, in the city of Mataram have yet to secure permanent head teachers. Difficulties in completing the application within the SIM KSPSTK system are the main reason for the delay in filling the principal positions. “There are around 50 that remain unfilled. Actually, they are ready, and there are even prospective principal candidates who have already completed the training,” said the Head of the Mataram City Education Agency, Yusuf, when confirmed on Monday. Yusuf revealed that filling principal posts must go through the SIM KSPSTK application. However, the Mataram Education Agency has so far not submitted the names of principals for the 50-odd schools due to several considerations. “The system is in the director’s application, called KSPSTK. So all proposed principals must be entered into that system. There are several considerations; if they are already issued, they cannot re-enter. If we issue them to become supervisors, there is no regulation for these supervisors yet,” he said. “If current principals are to be made supervisors, it would be a pity if they do not receive certification. So we are thinking about the welfare of both principals and school supervisors. On one hand, we fill the position, but on the other, it results in the non-payment of certification,” Yusuf continued. Yusuf predicted that filling the 50-odd principal positions in Mataram will take a long time. It is even certain that dozens of schools will not have definitive principals by the time the School Environment Introduction Period begins. “We have not entered all the candidates into the application. The process is lengthy,” he explained. Despite the 50-odd schools lacking permanent principals, Yusuf assured that teaching and learning activities are running normally. “Whether it’s an acting principal or a definitive one, it’s the same. They just need to supervise, monitor the teachers’ learning programmes, and so on,” he concluded.