Cak Imin: The Government And The DPR Must Be Thankful To Islamic Boarding Schools

JAKARTA - Chairman of the National Awakening Party (PKB) Muhaimin Iskandar assessed that pesantren had a big role in fostering and educating students in Indonesia.

Islamic boarding schools also have a role in tackling poverty. This can be seen from many Islamic boarding schools that provide education for free.

"Pesantren memiliki peran untuk mengatasi kemiskinan karena mayoritas yang berkolah, menjadi santri, masuk pesantren adalah yang dari ekonomi yang paling bawah bahkan yang tidak mampu membayar," kata Cak Imin di kantor DPP PKB, Jakarta Pusat, Jumat, 20 Juni.

According to Cak Imin, pesantren has the ability to make graduates have endurance because they receive education by maintaining simplicity and in the midst of limited infrastructure.

This means that pesantren has a role to play in breaking the poverty chain. Because, he continued, many children cannot get to know education if there is no pesantren.

"This excess is recognized historically and the DPR should also thank pesantren," said Cak Imin.

In addition, the Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment assessed that pesantren has the ability and motivation to use knowledge as motivation and purpose in educational institutions.

"The government has given birth to many graduates who grew up to be perpetrators, figures, fighters for leaders. In fact, once as President, Kiai Haji Abdurrahman Wahid, once as Vice President was named Kiai Ma'ruf Amin and we all of these are almost all pesantren graduates," he said.

On the one hand, Cak Imin admitted that pesantren must now open their eyes and quickly adapt to technological advances. Therefore, Cak Imin said that PKB will hold an International Conference on the Transformation of Islamic Boarding Schools with the theme "Classy Students Towards Golden Indonesia: Strengthening Tradition, Innovation, and Independence".

The conference, which discussed the promotion of Islamic boarding school education, will be held on June 24-26, 2025 at the Grand Sahid Jaya Hotel, Central Jakarta.

This conference will present 300 participants consisting of pesantren caregivers, leaders of religious community organizations (ormas), Islamic educational institutions, academics.

"We want to evaluate the teaching and learning system for three days and two nights inviting 300 main Islamic boarding schools throughout Indonesia. It is hoped that from there it will affect two things. First, the way pesantren work, the two government policies towards pesantren, including the evaluation of the Education Law and the Islamic Boarding School Law, which we will do part of the transformation of the change," explained Cak Imin.

This event will present a number of resource persons starting from the PKB DPP Shura Council, PKB DPP General Chair, Said Aqil Siradj, Nasaruddin Umar (Indonesian Minister of Religion), Abdul Mu'ti (Indonesian Minister of Primary and Secondary Education), and Stella Christie (Indonesian Deputy Minister of Higher Education).

In addition, this conference will also present sources from abroad, such as education figures from Egypt, Turkey, to Iran.

Secretary of the PKB DPP Shura Council, Syaifullah Maksum, explained that this resource person from abroad will share his experience in the pesantren education system in his country, starting from the preparation of the curriculum to the adaptation of the times by the students.

Then, there were also academics who expressed views on how the pesantren education curriculum should be made according to market needs.

"Later on, we will formulate the results of the discussions from each participant, what exactly is the identification of the pesantren. Apart from being a scholar, (the students) must be able to fill professional fields in professional fields that so far can only be filled by friends who graduated from secular school institutions," he added.