Unsoed Expert: Public Services Under Prabowo Administration Improving
Purwokerto (ANTARA) - A Public Policy expert from Universitas Jenderal Soedirman (Unsoed) Purwokerto, Professor Slamet Rosyadi, assesses that public services under President Prabowo Subiently’s administration are generally improving, especially regarding the fulfilment of basic services for the community.
“In general, public services are getting better because the government is inevitably obliged to provide increasingly better basic services to the people,” he stated in Purwokerto, Banyumas Regency, Central Java, on Tuesday.
He noted that improvements in public services are visible in several fundamental sectors, particularly education and health, which are deemed increasingly capable of meeting community needs.
He believes that if these policies are realised, they could expand public access to higher education by reducing the financial burden that remains heavy for some segments of society.
“It depends on the current government’s commitment to providing more inclusive and affirmative services, so that state universities can truly be enjoyed by the public without the cost burden that remains very heavy for some,” said the Dean of the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIP) at Unsoed.
He added that the improvement in the quality of public services must be accompanied by bureaucratic restructuring, particularly within government agencies that interact directly with the public.
“Service to prison inmates, for instance, should be uniform. However, instances of disparity tarnish the government’s efforts to provide better public services,” he said.
He also noted that cases of abuse of authority regarding Building Use Rights (HGB) involving the Ministry of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/National Land Agency (ATR/BPN) also pose problems that stain the government’s commitment to improving public services.
According to him, the actions of rogue officials in public services can impact the overall reputation of the government, as the public judges service quality based on their direct experiences.
“The reputation the government seeks to build is ultimately tarnished by these individuals,” he said.
As an effort to face future public service challenges, he urged the government to enhance its ability to listen to and respond to public aspirations.
He noted that the public is becoming increasingly critical and possesses numerous channels to convey complaints and aspirations, including social media.
“Therefore, the government must listen more. The ability to hear the aspirations of the people is a vital part of improving and enhancing the quality of public services,” he said.
He stated that public aspirations should serve as both material for evaluation and a basis for executing policies and services to ensure they truly meet community needs.
In doing so, he said, the government would not only improve service quality but also ensure that such services can reach a larger portion of the population.
“The execution of public services must be truly appropriate and capable of reaching more people so they can enjoy those services,” concluded Prof. Slamet.