Ferry Denies School Was Demolished for Merah Putih Village Cooperative

Cooperatives Minister Ferry Juliantono has denied reports of a school building being demolished in East Nusa Tenggara for the construction of a Merah Putih Village Cooperative (KDMP). He asserted that the information circulating on social media does not match the facts on the ground. The statement was made by Ferry while answering a question from Commission VI DPR member Dewi Juliani during a working meeting on Thursday, 11 June 2026. According to Ferry, the Ministry of Cooperatives has verified the incident in Niowula Village, Ende Regency, on 5 June 2026. The investigation results showed no demolition of the school as narrated in the viral video. ‘There is indeed a cooperative construction process. The building passes through the school area, but it does not demolish the school,’ Ferry said. He explained that the land for the cooperative outlet is a land grant from the community to the Ende Regency Government located behind the Wolomoni State Primary School. The use of the land had been through consultation with the Ende Regency Education and Culture Office and received approval from the headmaster at the direction of the regent. ‘The construction site is behind the school, not within the complex. Because there was no road access for heavy equipment, a route was opened via the side of the school,’ said the Gerindra Party politician. Ferry added that the school committee was also involved in the process on the ground. In fact, according to him, the school also submitted a request for support to repair facilities. Previously, a composite video lasting about 30 seconds circulated on social media claiming to show the demolition of the school. In the initial part, a TNI member is seen inspecting the damaged ceiling of a school building, while an excavator is near the location. The video then shows a man standing on the excavator engaging in a verbal altercation with several residents. The narrative accompanying the video stated that parents and customary leaders were protesting the planned demolition of the school by the TNI. Head of the TNI Information Centre, Brigadier General Muhammad Nas, also denied any demolition. He stated that the cooperative construction was carried out behind the school area and did not replace the function of the educational building. Nas explained that limited access forced heavy equipment to pass through the school area. During the manoeuvre, one of the building pillars in the corner of the school was hit. ‘The pillar was shifted to facilitate the equipment’s manoeuvre, and it will be repaired,’ Nas said. He also said the commotion recorded in the video was triggered by the heavy equipment incident hitting branches of a resident’s tree. ‘The heavy equipment hit a resident’s durian tree. The protest stemmed from that,’ he said. According to Nas, the video clip was then disseminated with an incomplete narrative, thus triggering public misunderstanding. He reminded the public not to rush to conclusions without thoroughly checking the facts.