Minister of Public Works Frustrated with Slow Progress on People's School Project in Nganjuk
Public Works Minister Dody Hanggodo explained his anger during an inspection of the People’s School (SR) project in Nganjuk, East Java. This was triggered by the low construction progress, which is lagging behind other regions, and the weak response from the technical team.
“Let’s talk about Nganjuk first. Nganjuk is indeed very behind, right? It’s still only about 15 percent, perhaps. What I don’t like about my team is that when I arrived, they gave excuses for why it’s behind instead of suggestions on how to catch up,” Dody said during his inspection of the People’s School construction in Kedung Cowek, Surabaya, East Java, on Sunday, 12 April 2026, as reported by Antara.
Dody also highlighted suspicions of indecisive behaviour within the Directorate General of Strategic Infrastructure (DJPS), which he believes could lead to negative speculation regarding ties with project service providers.
“I’m a bit confused here. Why does my team seem afraid of the service providers? There are rumours out there that the service providers are giving something to my team, but it’s just rumours; I can’t prove it. But the facts I received on the ground are like what happened in Nganjuk yesterday,” he stated.
According to him, the People’s School Programme is a priority of President Prabowo Subianto in efforts to eliminate extreme poverty, so its implementation must be handled seriously. He conveyed that he felt extremely annoyed with the performance of the relevant parties in the project. He even admitted that if he were younger, his emotions might have been harder to control.
That frustration, he said, was triggered by an attitude deemed unserious in executing the government programme, especially one aimed at eradicating extreme poverty. He also emphasised that civil servants (ASN) must work professionally and not take their duties lightly.
According to him, ASN must support the success of government programmes, including the People’s School.
He revealed a discrepancy between the completion target requested by the President and the project contract as another source of frustration, as it could hinder the facility’s use at the beginning of July 2026.
“It turns out the People’s School contract ends on 23 July. Well, this seems like it’s going against the President’s orders. The President’s order is for our younger siblings to enter the new People’s School in July. But the contract ends on 23 July—try that. Yes, I’m confused too,” he said.
Dody emphasised that he will conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the DJPS apparatus to ensure project supervision runs optimally and in line with central government directives.
Nevertheless, he appreciated the progress of the People’s School construction in Surabaya, which he assessed as running well and on target, including the project handled by PT Waskita Karya (Persero) Tbk.