HEADLINE

Good governance is key to the overall success of an educational system, but is often neglected in our daily discourse, because it is dismissed as a less “sexy” issue. More often than not, we are more interested in talking about a lofty vision, mission, and goals for national education. In fact, predictably grandiosely-formulated vision, mission, and goals cannot be implemented properly if the management on the ground is poor, often prompting derisive remark “No Action, Talk Only.” That is why this Article seeks to discuss educational issues from a governance perspective. 

The electric stove conversion program has been widely discussed in the public sphere in recent months. The program, expected to be a solution to state-owned electricity company PT. PLN’s electricity oversupply as well as a more targeted measure to reduce energy subsidies, finally scraped through with an official announcement by the PLN President Director. The decision to cancel the program is emblematic of a policy climbdown in the face of mounting public criticism. 

After hinting at it for months, the government finally moved to raise the price of fuel (BBM) on Saturday, September 3. Predictably, this sparked public protests and demonstrations. In the midst of a relatively high inflation rate (4.69 percent yearon-year in August) and the still ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, this has eroded purchasing power. Experts fear that the fuel price hike will spike inflation even further and push more people into poverty. 

After having gone through long discussions and sparking controversy in the public sphere, the government finally took the decision to increase the price of subsidized fuel. The price of subsidized diesel fuel (Solar) went up from Rp5,150 to Rp6,800 per liter. Meanwhile, Pertalite-branded gasoline increased from Rp7,650 to Rp10,000 per liter. 

The future direction of national energy policy, namely the transition from fossil energy to renewable energy, makes the role of gas as an energy transition medium even more important, partly because of its carbon emission factor. This clean energy source will grow mainly across the Asia Pacific. Gas still plays an essential role in developing countries, including Indonesia, which is committed to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 29% by 2030 and up to 41% with international assistance (IA), including technology and finance. The energy sector is committed to reducing GHG emissions by 314 million tons of CO2e to 398 million tons of CO2e by 2030, through the development of renewable energy, the application of energy conservation, and the application of clean energy technology. Therefore, the role of gas as an energy transition medium is very important. 

Many classical economists argue that the production of goods will automatically generate its own demand. This is known as Say’s law, or the law of markets. The theory claims that industries will not lose money as long as they continue to produce goods or services. So, even if there is turmoil in the economy, production will be encouraged to continue as usual. 

The protracted war between Russia and Ukraine and the possibility of growing inflation present a complex challenge to Indonesia’s economic recovery trend, which has been going strong since 2021. Indonesia is one of the oil-consuming nations that has seen its commodity prices rise as a result of the rise in the price of energy commodities globally. 

On August 17, 2022, Indonesia celebrates its 77th anniversary of Independence. However, not many people realize that for 77 years a non-military war between Indonesia and its former colonizer the Netherlands has been going on. After 77 years, the Dutch government still refuse to recognize the de jure independence of the Republic of Indonesia on August 17, 1945 rather than on December 27, 1949, when the former “transferred” the sovereignty from the government of the Nederlands Indië to the government of Republik Indonesia Serikat (United States of Indonesia). 

On August 2, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and a delegation of five Democratic Party House members landed in a U.S. Air Force transport plane at Songshan Airport in downtown Taipei. Despite China’s strong objections, Pelosi boldly visited Taiwan, prompting the Chinese government to register serious representations and strong protests to the US. 

The price of crude oil has risen to an unsettling level that threatens to slow down the domestic economy. As Russia has its energy card as the most potent weapon against western sanctions, it is not anticipated that the conflict between Ukraine and Russia would deescalate anytime soon. Russia will be more confidence to continue its military aggressiveness if crude oil prices rise. Putin’s warning that if western sanctions on Russia are tightened, oil prices could rise to $300 per barrel presages a nightmare that we must confront. Any increase in oil prices is uncertain, thus many nations are under pressure to start reevaluating their energy security policies, pointedly their fuel subsidies. 

Since the founding of the youth oath (Sumpah Pemuda) on October 28, 1928, which was attended by adolescents from all across the archipelago, youth have made significant contributions to the struggle of the Indonesia’s independence. This is one of the pillars in achieving an independent and unified Indonesia.