The Boards of Islam and Muhammadiyah (AIK) Affairs Forum of Muhammadiyah – ‘Aisyiyah Higher Education Institutions (MHEIs) in Indonesia for the Academic Year 2020-2024 were officially inaugurated. Universitas Muhammadiyah Riau (UMRI) successfully hosted the inauguration followed by a national meeting.
The inauguration was conducted in Pangeran Hotel Ballroom, Pekanbaru on Friday (30/09) attended by the Deputy Chair of Muhammadiyah Council for Higher Education, Research, and Development (CHERD), Prof. Dr. Noor Rachman Hadjam; the Chairman of Islam and Muhammadiyah Affairs Forum, Prof. Dr. Syamsul Arifin MSi; Assistant 1 of Provincial Government Secretary of Riau, Masrul Kasmy; the Rector of UMRI, Dr. H Saidul Amin MA; the Muhammadiyah Provincial Board of Riau, Prof Dr. HM Nazir Karim, MA, and representatives of each institution in Indonesia.
The Rector of UMRI mentioned that AIK becomes the main spirit of MHEIs. However, in real practice, it only becomes a supplement. Because in the future, AIK should be internalized in MHEIs. “AIK and MHEIs are like the body and spirit which inevitably correlate to each other. It makes us different from other institutions,” he said.
In the future, Saidul hoped that AIK is not only a supplement, but also has other roles such as processing, nurturing, and developing AIK in every curriculum and subject.
On this occasion, the Deputy Chair of CHERD, Noor Rachman Hadjam, was expected from the inauguration to exchange ideas and design an interesting and creative concept.
“We hope the forum will release creative concepts that will be implemented as the goal we want. By creative concept, it will be a distinct characteristic of Muhammadiyah institutions and also the Islam and Muhammadiyah Affairs Forum,” he said.
Furthermore, Noor Rachman highly appreciated UMRI for being able to synergize with various parties. “I am impressed how UMRI maintains a harmonious relationship with the local government. It can be illustrated by the government’s support for this program. It will be a good example for all MHEIs in Indonesia,” he added.
For the 2020-2024 period, the Forum will now lead by Samsul Arifin from Universitas Muhammadiyah Malang (UMM), Ikhsan Dahlulfani from Universitas Muhammadiyah Metro as Secretary, and Sudaryono from Universitas Muhammadiyah Klaten as Treasurer.
Samsul Arifin, then, explained that AIK becomes a value that lives in an organization, especially for MHEIs. “So as inventory, AIK becomes a compilation of fundamental values that should be comprehended, internalized, and implemented in daily life, especially for the lecturers, educational personnel, and students,” he said.
