Jakarta Will Implement Free Private Schools, What Is The Fate Of Madrasahs?

Chairman of the DKI Jakarta DPRD Khoirudin (dprd-dkijakarta)

JAKARTA - The DKI Provincial Government and the DKI Jakarta DPRD have agreed to run free schools for the private sector. However, in its planning, it turns out that religious schools or madrasas ibtidaiyah, tsanawiyah, and Aliyah have not been targeted for free schools.

This was acknowledged by the Chairman of the DKI Jakarta DPRD, Khoirudin. Khoirudin said that madrasas could not be included in the tragic school program because of regulatory constraints. Currently, madrasas are not under the auspices of the DKI Education Office, but the Ministry of Religion (Kemenag).

"This madrasa school is regulated under the Ministry of Religion, not the DKI Jakarta Education Office," said Khoirudin, Wednesday, October 30.

Khoirudin said that his party had discussed this issue with the Regional Office of the Ministry of Religion (Kanwil Kemenag) DKI Jakarta. As a result, a madrasa proposal emerged to participate in running the free school program by financing through a grant budget.

"It's just administrative constraints, funding shouldn't be constrained. It can go through the grant route. Those who go to madrasa are also residents of Jakarta, and pay taxes. They should get the same treatment, they must be fair," explained Khoirudin.

Furthermore, Khoirudin emphasized that he had asked the DKI Provincial Government to allocate a grant budget to the madrasasah.

"I have come to face the Regional Secretary so that madrasas are treated the same. If not today, hopefully next year from the governor or the Regional Secretary can provide budget allocations, so that madrasas can be free," said Khoirudin.

Currently, the DKI Jakarta DPRD and the DKI Provincial Government are preparing a general budget policy and a temporary budget priority ceiling (KUA-PPAS) for the 2025 budget year APBD.

The allocation of the APBD draft next year is being tampered with to be able to run a free school program at private educational institutions in Jakarta.

There was a discourse that the free school budget would be taken from the Jakarta Smart Card (KJP) distribution budget. Thus, the educational assistance program has the potential to be removed because it is diverted to free schools.

However, the DPRD wants KJP to be distributed when free schools are implemented, considering that the educational assistance program is still very much needed by students from underprivileged groups of people.

Thus, temporary, executive and legislative solutions will apply to the central government so that the budget of the DKI Jakarta Education Office can be increased from the composition of the APBD, or at least there is additional profit sharing funds (DBH).