Gus Ipul Plays Table Tennis with Top Students During Visit to Bantar Gebang

Bekasi (September 30, 2024) – During his visit to the Bantar Gebang Integrated Waste Processing Site (TPST) on Monday (September 30, 2024), Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf (Gus Ipul) also visited SDN Sumur Batu II in Bantar Gebang District, Bekasi City. Gus Ipul's arrival was immediately greeted enthusiastically by the students and teachers.

Gus Ipul also greeted the enthusiastic faces while delivering a message and prayer to them so that they could pursue knowledge as high as possible. "Study as high as possible. Graduate from elementary school, continue to junior high school, to senior high school and later you can go to college. You can get enough knowledge and later you will serve the nation and state," said Gus Ipul which was agreed by all the children present at SDN Sumur Batu II field.

After greeting the children and teachers, Gus Ipul also handed over aid in the form of 49 packages of sports and educational equipment to student representatives. Gus Ipul also had time to play table tennis with Muhammad Abimanyu Hasan (11). The boy in grade 5 defeated Gus Ipul in a short table tennis match.

Abi, who has been learning to play table tennis since he was a child, once won the National Student Sports Olympiad (O2SN) in Sumur Batu District. He did not expect to be able to play table tennis against the Minister of Social Affairs. "I am happy but nervous. I never imagined I could play together with the Minister," he said embarrassedly.

In addition to handing over aid for sports and educational equipment, the Ministry of Social Affairs (MoSA) through Pangudi Luhur Integrated Center Bekasi also held a social campaign to prevent bullying and violence. The campaign aims to prevent bullying and violence among students which is increasingly common in Indonesia.

The principal of SDN Sumur Batu II, Tanti Setiyarini, revealed that out of 630 students at SDN Sumur Batu II, 60 percent of the parents work as scavengers.  Meanwhile, 30 percent live in shacks. Many of them often do not go to school. Therefore, Tanti is very grateful for the assistance of sports and educational equipment. She hopes the students will be more enthusiastic about going to school with the various types of equipment. Tanti is also very grateful to MoSA for the bullying prevention campaign which is also in line with their efforts to prevent violence in schools. "All of this is very useful. We always remind children not to commit violence against friends because bullying is not only physical but also verbal. We always remind them," concluded Tanti.