Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education and Prosecutors to Monitor PIP to Prevent Samarinda Student Case from Recurring

Although the PIP aims to break the cycle of poverty since 2014, its implementation still harbours many shortcomings that require data synchronisation and strict oversight from law enforcement agencies. Bandung (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen) is collaborating with the Republic of Indonesia Prosecutors’ Office to launch the “Jaksa Garda (Jaga) Indonesia Pintar” programme to ensure the Indonesia Pintar Programme (PIP) reaches the right targets and prevents deaths due to extreme poverty. Deputy Minister of Basic and Secondary Education (Wamen Dikdasmen) Atip Latipulhayat revealed that this initiative was triggered by a systemic evaluation, including the incident of the death of Mandala Rizky Saputra, a student at SMKN 4 Samarinda, which went viral because he used ill-fitting shoes leading to severe foot infection. “Three days ago, I was contacted by a reporter about a vocational school student who died from wearing small shoes. I checked with East Kalimantan; it turned out the individual was extremely poor, described as very thin. He was not registered for PIP, and the proposal came from the district office, not the school. Systemic improvements must be made for PIP to be effective,” said Atip in Bandung on Wednesday. Atip emphasised that although PIP aims to break the poverty cycle since 2014, its implementation still has many shortcomings requiring data synchronisation and strict oversight from law enforcement. “We hope that by providing this reporting link, they can report directly. The reports could concern whether the student received the full amount, only half, and so on. These reports are related; if they involve criminal matters, we might not proceed directly,” said Reda. Reda added that if the violations found are not in the criminal realm, they will hand over the data to Kemendikdasmen for follow-up, whether in the form of warnings or data management improvements. Additionally, according to him, PIP violations have mostly occurred at the recipient stage. Thus, Jaga Indonesia Pintar will target PIP recipients so they can directly report their issues. “We have changed the pattern; previously, the assistance funds went to the school, but today they are transferred to the students’ accounts. We will also integrate with Jaga Indonesia Pintar, so reports go to Jamintel. I am confident Jamintel can guarantee the reporters’ safety,” said Dedi. Meanwhile, the President’s Special Envoy for Youth Development and Arts Workers, Raffi Ahmad, hopes that the presence of Jaga Indonesia Pintar will make education in Indonesia better. “We hope this signed commitment can become a spirit for us to make youth education better and Indonesia more advanced,” he said.