Many scholar belives that IPDN must be erased and closed prior to its students brutality that caused one student death.But Abdurrahman Suparno agrees to the opinion that the institution should not be closed. The problem could be solved by the changing of IDPN system. He gives several reason to defend his opinion.
He argue that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono concurred the institution is suffering from poor management and believes an alternative education system for the institution should be considered.
Following a meeting with IPDN rector, I Nyoman Sumaryadi, the President postponed new student enrollments at the school for one year.
This move is intended to give management a sufficient break to prepare and implement a new and better public administration education system.
The President underlined the importance of the eradication of violence and militarism.
It has been proven that discipline can be instilled in students without adopting a too strict or military-style education system.
Many private and state institutions such as Pertamina and Telkom Indonesia, along with many banks, employ highly qualified and disciplined staffers. In fact, they were recruited from various non-military schools.
New recruits from non-military style education systems simply undergo further training, including leadership training, before taking up their new positions.
There are at least three steps the IPDN should consider to help restore its reputation and generate highly qualified graduates.
First, older and younger school students should be separated, avoiding unnecessary physical contact between students of vastly different age groups.
Three campuses should be built in three different provinces. For example first-year students could be grouped in Surabaya, second-year students in Medan and third-year students in Makassar. The existing campus would be used by final year students.
This method would cut the chain of violence automatically. Furthermore, it would give students experience in dealing with different cultures.
Second, public administration education should run over two semesters only. This will also avoid clashes between senior and junior students.
Recruitment should be open to university graduates (S1) or at least those who have passed 100 credit semester units. This is similar to the system used by the AKTA IV teacher training institute.
This type of education will cut costs, however, a law governing the changes should first be ratified.
The last step, but not the least, is that public administration education should be integrated into state universities, preferably the ones previously known as IKIP (Institute of Teacher Training and Education).
