Enrollment fee dispute in Bekasi

BEKASI: A non-governmental organization has said that local elementary and high schools in the mayoralty were able to impose illegally high enrollment fees because a lack of official monitoring.

The group blamed the Bekasi Education Agency and the City Council's Commission E for social affairs for failing to control enrollment fees in the mayoralty.

The head of the group Good Governance, Noor Fatah, said on Tuesday: "Commission E and the agency should have begun monitoring the situation days ago, prior to the new academic year, so schools would not have had the opportunity to impose high enrollment fees."

"Not all parents are able to spend millions of rupiah on enrollment fees," he said.

At some state-run elementary schools in Bekasi, the enrollment fee ranged from Rp 180,000 (US$21) to Rp 850,000. The fee is meant to go toward constructing classrooms, laboratories and libraries.

Commission E deputy chairman Syafrudin denied the accusations.

"We refuse to be accused of being lax in monitoring enrollment fees at some schools here," he said.

Last week, Commission E summoned the principals of several elementary and high schools, in response to increased protests by parents over the high enrollment fees. -- Antara