Students want principal removed

JAKARTA (JP): Some 300 students from SMU 97 senior high school in Ciganjur, South Jakarta, staged a protest at the Ministry of National Education on Tuesday, demanding the removal of their headmaster for his alleged involvement in school funds graft.

The students who arrived in Metromini mini buses and several other vehicles started their protest around noon.

"We have been staging a strike by not attending our classes for the past three days," said one of the protesters.

In their statement the group demanded their principal, Nelizar Gajali and his deputies A.A. Hasibuan and Pafarudin be removed from their post following alleged embezzlement of millions of rupiah from OSIS (Organisasi Siswa Intra Sekolah) fees, school development budget and funds from the World Bank.

"We want the headmaster to be tried!" shouted the students.

"Whenever we plan a students' event and ask for funds, he (Nelizar) always said that there is not enough money to finance the activity," the student said.

The OSIS fund could reportedly amount to some Rp 40 million per year, the student said.

The group, which was accompanied by four supervisory teachers, met with the secretary-general of the directorate general for primary and secondary education Baidlowi and the Ministry's spokesman Soemardi Dwidjosusastro.

"We will channel your aspirations to the Minister (Yahya Muhaimin) but as for legal proceedings it is not up to us. The ministry will file the report and investigate the matter internally," Baidlowi said.

Reports, however, revealed that Nelizar has been put on non- active duty by the Ministry of National Education Jakarta provincial office as of Tuesday, pending further investigation into the alleged graft case.

The group eventually dispersed peacefully around 1:30 p.m. (edt)