Minister of Villages collaborates with Peradiprof to strengthen village heads' legal understanding

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Minister of Villages, Development of Underdeveloped Regions, and Transmigration (Mendes PDT), Yandri Susanto, is collaborating with the National Leadership Council (DPN) of the Indonesian Professional Advocates Association (Peradiprof) to strengthen legal understanding for village heads and village officials. “We defend village heads who truly do not know the rules, not intentionally corrupt. They have no intention to corrupt, but because of their lack of knowledge, they do not comply with the rules, so they need assistance. They need to understand the law,” he said during an audience with the DPN of Peradiprof at the Ministry of Villages PDT office in Jakarta on Monday. According to him, strengthening legal understanding for village heads is highly important because it forms the main foundation for every policy and decision at the village level to avoid problems in the future. Currently, he said, many village heads still do not fully understand the regulations, thus potentially making unintentional mistakes. In fact, he added, village heads have a strategic role in managing budgets, formulating policies, and resolving social issues in the community. The cooperation with Peradiprof will focus on education programmes, training, and legal assistance for village apparatus. These efforts are expected to improve the quality of village governance that is more transparent, accountable, and in accordance with statutory provisions. In addition, both parties are expected to present comprehensive legal assistance, training, and education programmes for village heads throughout Indonesia. With the support of professional advocates, he is optimistic that village heads will be able to understand applicable regulations, from village fund management to village regulation formulation. The Peradiprof representative welcomed the initiative by stating the organisation’s readiness to actively participate in providing legal literacy to village apparatus. One of Peradiprof’s founders, Fauzie Yusuf Hasibuan, said that increasing legal capacity at the village level will directly impact more transparent and accountable governance as well as Indonesia’s overall development. “Indonesia’s strength lies in the villages. If the villages are not good, then this country will not be good, that’s why we are here; we want to collaborate to provide legal education,” he said. That step, he added, is also part of preventive efforts to minimise the potential for legal violations that often occur due to a lack of regulatory understanding. With legally aware village heads, he hopes that village development can run more optimally, on target, and in accordance with applicable statutory provisions.