Overhauling Pre-Employment Card Urgent

KOMPAS/BAHANA PATRIA GUPTA

Several people access the Prakerja.go.id website to register with the Pre-Employment Card program on 13 April 2020 at the East Java Manpower and Transmigration Office in Surabaya, East Java. The program, which offers training and a monthly allowance of Rp 3.55 million for four months under a national quota of 164,000 participants, aims to provide aid to workers who have been laid off due to the Covid-19 epidemic. East Java currently has 50,051 laid-off workers.

The people’s enthusiasm for the Pre-Employment Card program is undeniable. Unfortunately, a number of issues have emerged in connection with running the program. Evaluation and improvement must be done.

A Kompas special coverage on Wednesday (17/6/2020) uncovered several facts. An assessment by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) that was made public on Thursday (18/6/2020) confirmed the findings about a number of problems in managing the program.

The Pre-Employment Card Technical Team, chaired by the Deputy Attorney General for Civil and Administrative Affairs, on Friday (19/6/2020) also recommended the need to evaluate the program. It has even suggested postponing various payments pending the results of the evaluation.

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There are three important aspects that concern the KPK. First is the potential for conflicts of interest, because five platform providers run 250 of the 1,895 training courses, while a total of eight platform providers are involved with the pre-employment program.

Second is the potential for incurring state losses, as it turns out that 89 percent of the materials used in a sampling of 327 training tests is available for free on the internet.

This has caused a number of issues, such as the training organizers issuing certificates to the participants, even though they have not yet completed the training course.

Third concerns the matter of unsuitable training materials. Only 13 percent of the online training courses meet the program requirements. This has caused a number of issues, such as the training organizers issuing certificates to the participants, even though they have not yet completed the training course.

The verification of training participants was also poor, so people who still had jobs could take advantage of the program, even though they are not the targeted recipients of the pre-employment program. It is also feared that the Rp 5.6 trillion budget for the Pre-Employment Card program will not be spent according to its targets.

KOMPAS/HARRY SUSILO

Executive Director of Managing Management of the Work Cards for Denni Puspa Purbasari

This problem has arisen because the program started much earlier than originally scheduled. The program, which was to be launched in August 2020, kicked off in March 2020 instead. The goal then was for the program to function as an immediate social safety net for millions of workers who had been furloughed or laid off as a result of the Covid-19 epidemic. The program design was modified and a number of stages were bypassed.

This aspect of the program’s emergency aid function is certainly undeniable. However, consider the number of problems that have now arisen, this issue should not be ruled out, especially if it concerns potential legal risks. We appreciate the Komite Cipta Kerja (Job Creation Committee) for welcoming the KPK’s input. The program’s executive team is also committed to establishing more stringent criteria for and curation of training providers to address potential conflicts of interest.

Read also: Payment for Partners in Preemployment Card Program Awaits evaluation

Given the country\'s highly limited budget and the corruption that remains prevalent, the principles of good governance need to be maintained, such as accountability, transparency, participation, justice and effectiveness. Law enforcement also needs to be strengthened, particularly against those who might try to take advantage of the program or attempt to personally benefit from the program while the nation is hit by a pandemic.

We need to make sure that every rupiah of the limited state budget is truly used towards helping overcome the hardships of laid-off or furloughed workers, in accordance with the noble goal of the Pre-Employment Card program.