Anies Reveals Reasons for Public Trust Erosion in Leaders
Former Minister of Education and Culture Anies Baswedan stated that the prerequisite for becoming a leader is to gain trust from one’s followers. However, that trust can erode if personal and group interests are prioritised.
“So, if they only think about themselves, their children, their nephews, right? Their families. People immediately lose trust, don’t they,” said the former Rector of Paramadina University while speaking at a seminar titled ‘Integrity, Character, Competence, and Technology in Education in Indonesia’ at Paramadina University, East Jakarta, on Wednesday, 6 May 2026.
The former Governor of DKI Jakarta said that leadership is not a natural talent brought from birth. Leadership is a potential in every human being that can be nurtured.
For Anies, a person is considered a leader if they have followers. Followers choose a leader based on trust. Trust arises when the leader has competence. Trust also arises when the leader has integrity.
“Integrity means acting honestly in accordance with existing norms and rules,” he said. Anies added that leaders must also have intimacy or closeness with their followers. “So the formula is trust equals competence, integrity, and intimacy.”
However, that trust can erode when leaders prioritise personal interests. The greater the emphasis on personal interests, the lower the level of trust.
In addition, Anies said that leadership must also have the ability to learn new things and the courage to abandon old understandings that are no longer relevant.
“Leaders must realise that previous knowledge may no longer apply with the development of the times,” he said.
Anies exemplified the paradigm shift in the world of education. Previously, the education paradigm was teacher-centred. Now, education is student-centred. Therefore, Anies asked teachers to become sources of knowledge and facilitators.
He also suggested that students and university students possess three characters to continue developing. The three are critical thinking, creative thinking, and an adaptive attitude. According to him, critical thinking is the foundation of those three characters. Without critical thinking, there is no creativity and innovation.
“Innovation is also not just about creating something but presenting new solutions to old problems that keep recurring. Only those with sharp critical thinking can produce such innovative solutions,” he said.
Anies attended the event organised by Paramadina University. This event invited a number of teachers and students from various schools in Jakarta and Bekasi.