Social Minister: Sekolah Rakyat Students Show Optimism for the Future

Social Minister (Mensos) Saifullah Yusuf, commonly known as Gus Ipul, held a breaking-of-fast gathering with teachers and students of Sekolah Rakyat (People’s School) at ICE BSD in Tangerang Regency, Banten. He observed numerous positive changes in the students after seven months of the programme’s implementation.

Gus Ipul expressed emotional satisfaction at witnessing these positive transformations among Sekolah Rakyat students. He also stated his pride in the changes observed.

“When we first saw our children enter Sekolah Rakyat seven or six months ago, the changes were already evident, at least physically at first. They already look more attractive, they look healthier and more vibrant,” Gus Ipul said during his remarks at ICE BSD in Tangerang Regency on Friday (27 February 2026).

Gus Ipul observed that the Sekolah Rakyat students present demonstrated self-confidence when presenting themselves publicly. He noted that they appeared to possess optimism about their futures.

“This is something we should be grateful for together. Now they appear more confident, no longer hesitant, and most importantly, our children seem optimistic about facing the future,” he explained.

According to him, these changes were also evident among the Sekolah Rakyat teaching staff. He stated that this development strengthened his own commitment to duty.

“The changes are visible not only in the students, but also in the teachers, the school principals, and other education personnel. This makes me and the team assigned by the President more confident as well,” he said.

Gus Ipul recalled how the initial launch of Sekolah Rakyat faced challenges. Particularly, the tight preparation timeline required extra effort from his team.

“Because this was the first time it was being implemented and with very rapid preparation, we worked hard to properly understand what President Prabowo meant by implementing Sekolah Rakyat,” he noted.