LPDP Scholarships: An Investment in the Nation, but Recipients Lack Pride in Being Indonesian Citizens?

Thu, 26 Feb 2026, 11:42 WIB | By Indriyani Astuti | Source: MEDIA_INDONESIA | Social Policy

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The cancellation of outstanding dues needs to be realized first while considering economic conditions.

Social observer from the University of Indonesia (UI), Rissalwan Habdy Lubis, responded to the viral case of an LPDP scholarship recipient who said, “I’m fine being an Indonesian citizen, but my child shouldn’t be.” He said that the public must understand that the LPDP scholarship is a national investment.

“Why do I say it’s an investment? Because education doesn’t yield instant results; the results are long-term. The LPDP program itself was created in the Ministry of Finance to accumulate the country’s financial strength so that this educational investment is centralized,” he told Media Indonesia on Thursday (February 26).

“When I was about to go to college, scholarships were scattered. Some were in the Ministry of Education, some were in Bappenas, each ministry had its own. So I see LPDP as the country’s seriousness in managing national assets, the best young people,” Rissalwan continued.

Through LPDP, the country provides scholarships for the nation’s children to pursue education at the best schools with adequate and decent facilities. However, with the condition that, because they are using state money, they must return to serve the country.

“So, if the question is, what’s up with the phenomenon that’s been happening lately? People are even cheating the LPDP system. Cheating means this:” he said.

He gave an example of the motive for cheating the LPDP system. In the rules, LPDP recipients must return to Indonesia and carry out service after completing their studies according to the contract contained in the scholarship.

“First, his wife takes it. Then his wife finishes, then her husband takes it. Then her husband takes it, finishes his master’s degree, his wife takes a doctorate. What does that mean? He’s cheating the system. Because he should have returned to Indonesia after he finished school,” explained Rissalwan.

“But now it’s being cheated. What does that mean? They are abroad for years. It could be for more than a decade,” he added in response to LPDP scholarship recipients who have been found to have violated the contract and been subject to fines.

According to Rissalwan, the problem is that supervision and control of LPDP recipients are not being carried out properly.

“There should be control and there should be guidance. So guidance means that there should still be a consultation process. There should still be a supervisor from LPDP. Don’t wait until he graduates and joins Mata Garuda before being given a supervisor, before being given a mentor. But while he is in school, the Ministry of Finance or LPDP should also be doing regular monitoring,” he explained.

“Don’t let him go astray first before being told. How can we leave our investment alone?” he added. (H-4)

Farhan said that in a more logical approach, recipients of state scholarships should have a moral commitment to return and contribute to Indonesia.

LPDP is public funds sourced from Indonesian people’s taxes and managed as an endowment fund for education to finance the next generation of the nation.

Why does the LPDP polemic trigger public anger? See the latest facts about 44 alumni who have defaulted, the imposition of fines, and sharp criticism from the Minister of Finance.

Andi Muawiyah Ramly, a member of Commission X of the DPR RI, said that the violations committed by LPDP scholarship recipients are a serious alarm for the government to make improvements.

The awarding of LPDP scholarships should be done through stricter selection, given the increasing number of cases of awardees or LPDP scholarship recipients who commit violations.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia has ensured that 65 Indonesian citizens in Jalisco, Mexico, are safe following the deteriorating security situation after the death of the leader of the El Mencho Cartel.

What else needs to be done by the state, in this case the LPDP manager, so that this does not happen, so that scholarship recipients really contribute to their homeland?

Being an Indonesian citizen is a phenomenon that can be experienced by a person due to various factors, not everyone experiences it.

The Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, Stella Chrstie, also gave her response regarding the viral LPDP alumni who do not want their children to have Indonesian citizenship.

A recipient of the LPDP scholarship with the initials DS sparked pro and contra on social media. Here is the chronology of the statement by the LPDP recipient about his child not being an Indonesian citizen.

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