[b]High-cost learning:

High-cost learning: Too late to protest

From Warta Kota

Commission VI of the House of Representatives recently summoned the heads of four higher educational institutions, i.e. University of Indonesia, Gajah Mada University, Bandung Institute of Technology and Bogor Institute of Agriculture.

At the meeting the commission flatly rejected the policy of the institutions to introduce special entrance fees amounting to millions of rupiah, or even tens of millions, for new students. The commission also asked the four institutions to review the planned fee imposition.

It is certainly too late for the commission to act in that way. Why is that so? Simply because the four institutions became state-owned legal agencies (BHMN) long ago. Legislators must have been aware of that and should have been alert to what would be the consequence of such a change of status, both financially and managerially.

The commission should have thought of and anticipated the financial problems faced by the institutions. Only when the institutions had announced the special fees and society was outraged at the extremely high cost imposed on them did the commission suddenly awaken from its slumber. Shall we call it an "untimely awakening?"

ZULKIFLI HASSAN Jakarta