NU universities told to develop NU pinciples in education

Jakarta, NU Online
The country's largest Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) has called on the Nahdlatul Ulama Higher Education Committee (LPTNU) to run NU missions in education, especially at universities which will be managed.<>

General chairman of the Central Board of Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU) KH Said Aqil Siradj (Kang Said) made the remarks at a coordination meeting of NU universities throughout Indonesia which are under the umbrella of LPTNU, at the PBNU headquarters in Jakarta on Thursday (9/8).

One of the NU missions is to preserve long-standing good traditions in addition to taking new better better new traditions, innovations and developments (almukhafadhotu alal qadimis sholih wal akhdzu bil jadidil aslah).

"The principle has long been applied at NU Islamic boarding schools (pesantren). It's long been preserved from the time before independence until now," he said.

Other principles, Kang Said said, were the ones having so far been maintained in pesantren such as simplicity, unity, tolerance, and so forth.

He was of the opinion that so far NU formal educations, especially its higher educations had been marginalized due to the government's political policy.

"Ministers of education and culture have for years not been from Nahdliyin (NU followers), then NU (universities) have been marginalized," he said.

At this time, Kang Said added, the Minister of Education and Culture "is from NU, hopefully plans to build some 10 NU universities could immediately be implemented in Indonesia."

The meeting discussed and arrange steps and strategies aimed at developing NU universities in addition to dealing with the new law on higher education.

Writer : Abdullah Alawi
Editor : Sudarto Murtaufiq