JAKARTA Request from the Association of All Indonesian Village Governments (Apdesi) so that 10 percent of the State Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBN) or around Rp. 300 trillion for village funds reaps various responses.

Vice President KH Ma'ruf Amin assessed that the budget for villages so far has been quite large. According to the calculation, even more than Rp. 400 trillion.

Because, not only the Ministry of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration (PDTT) only focuses on village development. Other ministries, such as the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing, the Ministry of Health, as well as the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology also have programs targeting rural communities.

"For those who go to the Ministry of PDTT, it is Rp. 70 trillion, but from other ministries whose focus is also on the village, it is more than Rp. 400 trillion. So, if it is calculated in total, it is very large," said the Vice President as quoted from the Vice President Secretariat website.

Moreover, the amount of village funds tends to increase from year to year. In 2018 alone, the government has budgeted for village funds of Rp. 60 trillion and the realization reached Rp. 59.86 trillion or 98.77 percent.

The following year, according to a report by Sukarno W. Sumarto on the website of the Financial and Development Supervisory Agency, village funds increased to Rp70 trillion, with the realization of village funds that had been disbursed until August 2019 reaching Rp42.2 trillion or 60.29%.

Then in 2020, it will increase again to Rp72 trillion. So, if distributed to 74,953 villages, each village receives no less than Rp800 million per year. The range is Rp800.4 million in 2018, Rp933.9 million in 2019, and Rp960.6 million in 2020.

"That does not include other funds flowing to the village either in the form of village fund allocations, financial assistance, profit sharing funds or other assistance (receivables) for rural development," said Sukarno.

PDI-P General Chair Megawati Soekarno Putri was surprised why village heads rallied only for village budget requests. Better, first prove its performance.

"If you just talk, you have to share the money like this, you have to do this. You like to think, be concerned, why are you still demonstrating today?" Megawati said at a 9th anniversary of the Village Law in the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium area on March 19, 2023.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the MPR RI, Bambang Soesatyo, gave a positive response. He considered that the 10 percent of the APBN for village funds was ideal because Indonesia's future was in the village. If the village is not prosperous, then the community will run to the city to find work which will eventually become a burden on the city.

"If the village funds are large and can be utilized, the village will develop. It can be independent and able to provide jobs for the community, they do not need to make a living to the city," said Bambang in his official statement on March 19, 2023.

In fact, the success of development in rural areas does not always talk about financial problems, but also human resources. It's useless to have large funds but no human resources are skilled at managing them.

In reality, by only receiving hundreds of millions of funds per year, many villages are able to change themselves, successfully innovate a number of innovations for physical and non-physical development for village progress.

In total, the Ministry of Finance noted that there were 168 village stories that successfully managed village funds as written by Prof. Dr. Sadu Wasistiono in the book 'Village Fund Management'.

One of them is Pilgok Village, Klaten, Central Java. This village is recognized as a village that successfully manages village funds. The village head of Ponggok uses village funds, among others, to develop Village-Owned Enterprises. Managing the potential of natural resources in the form of natural springs that he owns as water tourism villages. So that it becomes a field of income for the community.

Village-Owned Enterprises named Tirta Mandiri Ponggok so far already have superior business units including Umbul Ponggok, a natural pool that is a snorkling tour.

According to the Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani (2018), there are four keys that make these villages successfully manage village funds. First, transparency and accountability in the use of village funds. Second, community participation commitments.

"In successful villages, it is clear that the role of the community is being active. From the start, they worked together to determine the use of funds, whether to be used for infrastructure development or for Village-Owned Enterprises and social activities. They carried out self-management together and used the proceeds from village funds together, harmonious boosts," wrote Sadu.

Third, regarding the leadership of the village head. With its character and integrity, the village head is able to invite his people to work together to build villages.

Fourth, the priority scale so that village funds were successfully used for the needs of the village community.

"Based on these things, it is then our duty to make policies so that all villages can do it. There is still a lot of homework that we have so that it is the obligation of all parties to continue to play a real role, both in coaching, monitoring, and monitoring village funds," added Sadu.

Without this, village funds that are expected to further develop villages will actually become fields for village officials to cheat.

The corruption case that ensnared hundreds of village heads is clear evidence that the majority of village officials have not been able to carry out their functions effectively, efficiently, and sustainably. Both in planning, implementing development to strengthen administrative competencies, human resources, leadership, and budget management.