Valkyrie - stealing the money?

These schools are in need of repair because more than likely they were built with inferior materials. As well, if the students are anything like the students in the school I teach in, the buildings and furnishings are treated badly by the students - graffiti ought to be a subject on the curriculum as it comes as second nature to the students who seem to think they have a right to deface any surface.

But more importantly, these buildings are in disrepair because when they needed repairs there wasn't the money there to repair them. The schools are allocated money by the government - but by the time it has reached the school bank account - a fair proportion has been creamed off (read: stolen).

This exercise of the government is going to be another rort. Corrupt officials in the government, within the schools and amongst the tradesmen will see that the work that is done will need to be done again in a few years.

A few weeks ago I visited a new school - just recently completed. It was already dirty and had an air of neglect about it.

Each school should have the funds to employ janitors and not leave the cleaning of the classrooms to the good will of the students. They are too busy spitting, littering and writing graffiti on the walls to take care of the cleanliness of the school buyildings.

This will be another badly thought out scheme. A patched up job.

What is required is the 'renovation' of Indonesia's outlook. It's officials need to go back to school to learn the old maxim: 'We who are poor, cannot afford to buy cheap things.'

Why, we just moved into a new 'expensive' house 6 months ago - and there are cracks on every wall in the house. When we complained to the company who built the house they said the 6 month limit for complaints was up and besides (QUOTE) "..our workman use inferior materials." (UNQUOTE) Can we do anything about it? Not a thing! Its very difficult to sue anyone in Indonesia because of the corruption everywhere - especially in the courts.

So, good luck to the Indonesian government for throwing money after money. There will be a lot of people rubbing their hands together and licking their greedy lips at the prospect of getting their hands on some of this Rp. 9.3 trillion.

While this work needs to be done, I have no doubt it will be done dishonestly and incompetently. That's the track record. And nothing is going to change until Indonesians change their mentality. Since we are talking about schools here, this change in mentality could begin with a fair number of adults simply 'growing up' and realizing that their behaviour is harming the country.

132,000 schools due for renovations! What have they been doing?