Pramono Requests Additional Quota for People's Schools, Prioritising Street Children

Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung has requested that the additional quota for the People’s School (Sekolah Rakyat) programme in Jakarta be prioritised for children from the most vulnerable families, such as street children, buskers, and those from broken homes. Pramono said he was impressed after visiting a People’s School in South Jakarta, a programme initiated by President Prabowo Subianto, describing it as new hope for children from underprivileged families. “In Jakarta, I immediately decided to request an additional 1,000 students. We will prepare the boarding school, while the central government will assist with the education and learning,” Pramono said during the launch of the book ‘Marhaenism: A New Proposition for Gen Z’ at Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM), Central Jakarta, Saturday (4/7/2026). The current quota for DKI Jakarta is 1,000 students. With the proposed addition, the quota for the People’s School in Jakarta would become 2,000 students. Pramono stressed that the additional quota must be given to children from the lowest strata of society. “I ask that these 1,000 [additional students] truly come from the lowest families. Broken home families, school dropouts, and children who—as I saw myself yesterday—work on the streets, buskers, and so on,” he continued. Pramono admitted he was surprised by the transformation of the People’s School students, noting that many are now able to speak English, Arabic, and Mandarin. “What shocked me was that they can really speak English, Arabic, and Chinese. Their faces have also changed, and that is, in my opinion, the symbol of Marhaenism,” he said. He also confessed that he shed tears when he saw the students’ activities firsthand, viewing the People’s School as a real effort to uplift the dignity of people from the lowest social groups through education. “Honestly, yesterday when I saw Mr. Prabowo’s People’s School, I cried. Because that is what I dreamed of,” he stated.