UNS — Surakarta Major, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, hopes that the people economy around the Universitas Sebelas Maret (UNS) Surakarta campus can be revived after the implementation of face-to-face (PTM) learning on Monday (6/9/2021). He stated that UNS currently has more than 40,000 students and strongly affects people whose business relies on student’s activities before the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I ask support from people in Solo to reach level two or level one (on the restriction of community activities scale). When we open schools, automatically the economic wheels will move faster, especially in UNS, because it has 40 thousand students who obviously have a great impact on the economic activities around the campus, for those owning hostel, restaurant, photocopy, and laundry,” Gibran said to uns.ac.id after reviewing PTM implementation in FEB UNS on Wednesday morning (8/9/2021).
Gibran Rakabuming Raka said that he could not wait to open all schools and campuses and hoped that student’s parents were not worried about the start of PTM in UNS. He mainly guarantees that UNS students from other cities who meet the requirements to participate in PTM will come and go home healthily. He added that UNS had implemented tight health protocols and disciplinary approaches to its students who meet the criteria to participate in the PTM.
“Parents should not worry, especially in UNS, come healthy go home also healthy, and those unvaccinated do not need to be afraid because the vaccine is to achieve herd immunity,” he added.
To the Rector of UNS, Prof. Jamal Wiwoho, who accompanied him in reviewing the PTM implementation in the three faculties, Gibran Rakabuming Raka appreciated UNS’ quick steps that directly responded to Surakarta Municipal Government to start PTM. He said that online learning experienced by UNS students since 16 March 2021 makes them got a long learning loss.
“We do not want to restrict for too long. We want our young to start learning because the learning loss has taken place for almost two years, and we do not want to worsen it, and what’s important is the learning spirit; the learning spirit is vital,” he said.
When the central government lowers the Surakarta PPKM level to the third stage, the municipal government directly encourages UNS to start PTM. To which the Rector acted promptly and opened the PTM in the following week.
“This is incredible,” Gibran Rakabuming Raka concluded. Humas UNS
Reporter: Yefta Christopherus AS
Editor: Dwi Hastuti