160 Teachers withdrew from People’s Schools, Commission V of the DPR highlighting the lack of basic infrastructure – Indonesia’s latest viral

VIRALTERKINI.ID, JAKARTA – The wave of resignation of 160 teachers from the People’s School Program brought up serious attention from members of the House of Representatives Commission V, Irine Yusiana Roba Putri.

He considered, this incident was an indicator that the development of basic infrastructure was not yet a priority in the implementation of the educational program.

Irine emphasized that the construction of educational facilities such as people’s schools should not only focus on the physical construction of buildings.

According to him, the ease of access and availability of basic facilities such as clean water, electricity, sanitation, and road access is a basic need that cannot be ruled out.

“When we talk about education, then clean water, sanitation, electricity, and road access is not a complement, but basic needs. How can teachers feel at home teaching if they are placed in locations where even basic needs are not available?” Irine said in his official statement, Tuesday (7/29/2025).

Previously, Social Minister Saifullah Yusuf or Gus Ipul revealed that the resignation of the teachers was caused by the location of placement far from their residence.

The teacher recruitment system itself is coordinated by the State Personnel Agency (BKN) and the Ministry of Administrative Reform and Bureaucracy Reform (KemenpanRB).

At present there are 100 people’s schools have been built throughout Indonesia, with a total of more than 9,700 students at various levels of education.

However, Irine views the teacher’s resignation wave to clarify the existence of structural problems in cross -sectoral planning and coordination, which has long been the concern of the House of Representatives Commission V.

“The withdrawal of hundreds of teachers simultaneously needs to be an evaluation and improvement in planning and coordinating across sectors in the people’s school projects, especially the fulfillment of infrastructure,” he said.

Irine also highlighted two people’s schools in her constituency, North Maluku. He regretted that the existence of these schools was not accompanied by the development of supporting infrastructure for the surrounding community.

“The government through the relevant ministries may not allow villages around the people’s schools to be left behind,” he said.

As an area included in the foremost, outermost, and disadvantaged categories (3T), Irine questioned the government’s commitment in providing a system of drinking water (SPAM) and appropriate sanitation in these schools.

“It is said that there are 100 people’s schools, two of them are in North Maluku. My question is, is the spam or not? Where is the sanitation?” he said.

“The people’s school is finished, there is a spam, the sanitation is good, but the village there is forgotten. This is often happening. We don’t want to be like that.”

Furthermore, Irine asked the Ministry of Social Affairs to immediately coordinate with the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR), PLN, and local governments to ensure the availability of basic infrastructure since the planning stage.

Not only that, he stressed the importance of providing accommodation, transportation, or even mess for teachers who were assigned far from their residence.

“The government must pay attention to this. The Ministry of Social Affairs must sit together with the Ministry of Public Works and other relevant agencies to ensure supporting facilities for people’s schools can be fulfilled,” said Deputy Chairman of the Indonesian Parliament Inter-Parliament Cooperation Agency (BKSAP).

Irine stated that the people’s school program has a noble goal, which is to provide free quality education for children from poor and extreme poor families, as well as break the chain of poverty.

However, he stressed that the implementation of this program must be systematic and sustainable.

“People’s school is a good idea, but the implementation must be serious, systematic, and in favor of the future of Indonesian children,” concluded Irine.

With this condition, Irine asked the central government to be more careful in running national strategic programs, including people’s schools, so that it is not only a symbolic project that fails to touch the real needs of the community.

Cross -ministry coordination, regional government involvement, and meeting basic needs must be the main foundation in continuing the program.