'Education fund will be prone to embezzlement'

'Education fund will be prone to embezzlement'

The city administration has allocated a huge sum of money to
build or renovate classrooms, but data shows that many school
buildings are in poor condition. The projects are prone to
overvaluation and other fraudulent practices. A non-governmental
organization (NGO) monitoring schools in the city suspects that
the administration has marked up the budget for the fund by over
250 percent of the standard costs. The Jakarta Post spoke with
several residents about the issue.

Adeste, 16, is a second-year student at a private senior high
school in West Jakarta. She resides in Cileduk, Tangerang, with
her family:

I'm concerned about the collapse of several state-run school
buildings in some parts of the city recently.

I just wonder why the authorities have failed to manage the
city budget properly for education. I think we have to blame the
widespread corruption among high-ranking officials and
contractors.

I guess the allotted city budget for education -- Rp 94
billion this year -- will likely be misappropriated by corrupt
people involved in the project. Everybody knows of such
conspiracies.

How can we boost our education, as we are ranked the lowest in
the region for educational quality?

In addition, I'm afraid that the mentality of corruption will
probably encourage students to be dishonest. It's not impossible
that students might turn out this way, is it?

So, it would be better for the school management jointly with
the city administration and contractors to deal with a
transparent budget management system. The authorities could even
publish the expenditures in the media so as to inform the public.

Lola, 30, is a teacher at a private elementary school in West
Jakarta. She resides in Meruya, West Jakarta, with her husband
and son:

The poor condition of school buildings in the city is
ultimately due to the lack of proper funds and suitable
construction materials.

However, it sounds strange that the city administration plans
to allocate such huge budget to build and renovate classrooms.

I dare to say that the budget is prone to overvaluation and
leaks. The funds allocated toward build a classroom could
actually be used to build an entire school building.

It would be better for the city administration to offer the
project through an open tender so that there will be some control
from the public.

In addition, the city administration should be open to
feedback from the public on its plans and budget.

At the end of the project, the city administration should
expose the report transparently to the public. Alas, this has
never happened before.

Otherwise, I'm afraid that the ongoing deceitful practices
would only lower the quality of education in general. Substandard
resources and facilities, including uncomfortable school
buildings, won't improve education, I'm sure.

Didik (not his real name), 30, is a teacher at a private
junior high school in Tangerang. He resides in Halim, East
Jakarta, with his wife:

I think the city budget allotted this year for renovating
several schools is too much. I'm afraid that it will be prone to
embezzlement.

As far as I know, every single renovation proposal from
schools will not automatically be approved by the authorities. I
have made such a proposal before, and the requirements were very
complicated. In fact, it was a useless exercise, as our school
has never been approved for funds.

So, I believe that the close relationships and intense
lobbying between headmasters and city administration officials
are the keys to receiving the fund.

Worse, sometimes the fund is channeled to schools that do not
need repairs, and schools in dire need of renovation are
neglected.

I'm afraid that if the city administration requires such
complicated procedures, it will be prone to more corruption. So,
it would be better to simplify the procedures for distributing
the funds. Otherwise, the quality of our education will never
improve.

-- Leo Wahyudi S