Campus Managing Mining is a Form of New Corporatism in University Environment: UGM Professor

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February 3, 2025 | 11:13 am

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Professor of Management and Public Policy at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) Gabriel Lele said that the plan to grant mining concessions to universities is a new form of corporatism within the campus environment. Therefore, he affirmed that campuses should not open space to obtain mining business permits.

This discourse was previously proposed in the Fourth Amendment Bill to Law Number 4 of 2009 concerning Mineral and Coal Mining (Minerba Bill), which is now established as an initiative proposal of the House of Representatives.

"The granting of mining permits is a new form of corporatism by the government towards universities," he said in an official statement on Saturday, February 1, 2025.

Gabriel sees this corporatism as the state's strategy to include groups outside the government, including campuses, by providing certain benefits. However, this comes with a condition, campuses are no longer allowed to express their critical voices.

"I actually see that this is also a form of subtly silencing the critical voices of the campus," he said.

Furthermore, Gabriel also stated that this discourse potentially leads to corruption and moral risks. According to him, if campuses are involved in mining management, the upheld academic ethics will be displaced, as campuses must think with a more business-focused logic of profit and loss calculations. "Once again, business logic is being used," he said.

The discourse of campuses managing mines emerged in the revision of the Mineral and Coal Mining Bill (RUU Minerba), which officially became the House of Representatives initiative proposal through a plenary session on Thursday, January 23, 2025. The House of Representatives' Legislation Body (Baleg DPR) discussed the draft behind closed doors during the parliamentary recess, which ended on January 20.

"The Fourth Amendment Bill to Law Number 4 of 2009 contains provisions for granting Mining Business Permit Areas (WIUP) through auctions or prioritizing Businesses, Cooperatives, or individual Companies, Community Organizations (ormas), and Universities," said Baleg Chairperson Bob Hasan in a plenary meeting at the parliament building, Jakarta, January 20, 2025.

Bob said the government intends to ensure that all society members have equal rights in managing natural resources. Therefore, the government also wants to provide opportunities for universities to participate in managing natural resources, especially minerals and coal.

He explained that granting permits to universities is solely to enhance the quality of education. According to him, the government believes that to improve education, campuses require quality teaching staff, places, facilities, and infrastructure, which also require adequate funding.

According to Tempo Magazine's report, some politicians within President Prabowo Subianto's circle revealed that one of the intentions of granting mining concessions to universities is to align lecturers and students with the government, similar to the era of President Joko Widodo's administration. During Jokowi's leadership, the government was suspected of silencing criticism from campuses by offering positions to university leaders.

According to them, Prabowo is trying to prevent student demonstrations during his presidency. However, Bob, as the Chairperson of the DPR Legislation Body, denied that the Minerba Bill revision is intended to grip campuses. "The aim is to ease the financial burden of students for tuition fees," he said.

All the factions in the House of Representatives approved the Minerba Bill draft. Of the eight factions in parliament, four factions approved with comments, while the other four approved without comments.

The four factions that approved with comments are the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), National Democrat (Nasdem), National Awakening Party (PKB), and Prosperous Justice Party (PKS). Meanwhile, the factions that approved without comments are the National Mandate Party (PAN), Democratic Party, Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), and Golkar Party.

Dede Leni Mardianti, Francisca Christy Rosana, and Nabiila Azzahra contributed to this article.

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