Cabinet Secretariat of the Republic of Indonesia | Mr. Jokowi’s Scholarship, Answer to Mrs. Siti’s Prayers

Malalayang Beach, Jan. 20, 2023. Around this time, Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) was visiting a tourist spot in Manado city, North Sulawesi province to inaugurate the arrangement. From the middle of the crowd, a woman appeared who tried to pass the Paspampres security guards and screamed.

“Pak Jokowi, Pak Jokowi, me people want to tell you, Pak Jokowi, people Means. We want to tell you the heartache, Mr. Jokowi. Pak Jokowi, please look at me, I want to tell you a story,” Ms Siti said, recounting the story of her meeting with the Head of State.

Hearing the screams, President Jokowi looked at Mrs. Siti and immediately waved his hand.

“Come on, mum, come here, mum, what do you have to blame yourself for?” Come here lady.”

The road ahead of him then opened up, as if it were the answer to Mrs. Siti’s prayers the night before to meet the Head of State. As soon as they met, he held President Jokowi’s hand firmly and the grievances of his heart poured out.

He then told President Jokowi that he was unable to afford the one-time tuition fee for his son, Devid Telussa (UKT).

“At that time, Pak Jokowi kindly accepted me, my KTP asked. ‘Do you have an ID card? ‘Do you have a mobile number?’ There’s Pak Jokowi,” he continued as he told the story.

After the meeting, Ms Siti was called by presidential staff and asked for her child’s data to be assisted with a scholarship from President Jokowi. Mrs. Siti, who at the time was selling around the professor’s hospital. Kandou, Manado City, immediately started crying and sat down. Expressions of gratitude came out of Mrs. Siti Mafira’s mouth when she heard the news.

“Oh my God, thank you. O Allah, he allowed me to read the prayer all this time,” he said sobbing.

Mrs. Siti’s child, David Telussa, was born into a poor family. Currently, the 19-year-old is in his second semester at Sam Ratulangi University School of Law.

Mrs. Siti’s income from selling pudding and her husband, Pak Hamid, as an occasional driver is not enough to pay David’s UKT. In fact, when registering to participate in the State Joint Higher Education Entrance Screening (SBMPTN), David had to borrow an application fee of IDR 150,000 from a friend’s parents.

“When I wanted to enter there were a lot of hurdles, administrative issues when I participated in SBMPTN, I only borrowed money for registration. Even now, David only paid in installments because he was unable to repay it,” David said when met at his home in the Malalayang Satu area.

As the first son of a boy, David’s father, Pak Hamid Monoarfa, wanted his son to start working immediately after graduating from an SMK majoring in networking and IT. As an economically destitute person, Pak Hamid realizes how much it costs to send his child to college. However, seeing their son’s very strong determination to continue his education, they did their best so that David could go to college.

“But parents also think, try to try anyway. The first time it tried to connect first. So we try to refund that first. It’s IDR 3 million, it’s not entirely ours. Some we borrow from friends. So far it has not been paid, but they say they are sincere,” said Pak Hamid.

In the eyes of his parents, David was a diligent and obedient child. If Devi studies, he often loses track of time. It is not uncommon for the food stored for David to also become stale because David was coming home late at night to study. It’s no wonder that David was able to earn satisfactory grades in his first semester of college with a 3.6 GPA. Between his studies, David also sometimes works part-time washing dishes in a restaurant.

“They understand my situation, never make requests. If David wanted to go to college, or when he was at SMK he walked, when he had no money he walked to school,” Ms Siti said.

Even if she lacks it, Mrs. Siti believes that knowledge is the most beautiful and extraordinary treasure to pass on to her children. Therefore, Ibu Siti always tries her best to send her children to school for the future.

“The most beautiful treasure, the most extraordinary treasure, is knowledge. Because of this, I will do anything for my children and their future,” Ms Siti said.

Now Mrs. Siti and Mr. Hamid can breathe a sigh of relief because David Telussa received a scholarship from President Jokowi until David completes his studies. David was also very grateful for the scholarship and was determined not to waste the opportunity and to study as well as possible.

“Devid also thanks Mr. Jokowi for helping Devid as he is one of the most valuable helpers for Devid,” said Devid. (BPMI SETPRES/UN)