Defence Ministry Explains Military-Style Training for Village Cooperative Manager Candidates

Deputy Defence Minister Donny Ermawan Taufanto has explained that his institution’s implementation of basic military training (latsarmil) for candidates for the Red and White Village/Subdistrict Cooperative (KDMP) manager positions is fundamentally intended to build better character and discipline. ‘We cannot have managers who are unable to carry out their duties or lead their subordinates,’ Donny said at the DPR, MPR, and DPD complex on Wednesday, 1 July 2026. Donny stated the military training is also aimed at ensuring prospective KDMP managers are disciplined with their time and capable of establishing good cooperation and coordination with various other agencies. Moreover, he claimed that in the current climate, many ministries and corporations send their employees for military training to shape disciplined character. According to Donny, these employees undergo military training by adopting a barracks lifestyle, whether at TNI education centres, Rindam, or the Ministry of Defence’s state defence centres. ‘So, those are the values we want to instil. Naturally, a director or head of an agency would be pleased to have employees who are disciplined, have high integrity, and so on,’ he said. The implementation of military training for prospective cooperative managers and Red and White fishing village managers came under scrutiny after five participants died. The deceased were Nola Dya Sari, Novia Rahmadhani Sihotang, Anisa Muyassaroh, Yonanda Muhammad Taufiq, and Muhammad Rifki Renaldi Gunawan. Following these incidents, the Ministry of Defence, as the organiser, changed the nomenclature and training material for the prospective managers. The military training has been changed to state defence and managerial training.