Determination of Pedicab Pedestrians Received Bachelor Degrees

Majene, Sulbarkita.com --- Open University (UT) Majene West Sulawesi held a graduation ceremony for 350 students on Sunday, November 18, 2018. One of the graduates was Muhammad Hamzah, 23, who studied while pedaling a pedicab.

Hamzah was quite proud of his profession because he drove him to get a bachelor's degree. Hamzah's pride was shown by pedaling a pedicab from his house in Tanjung Batu, Labuang Village, Banggae Timur District, to the graduation location at the Sulbar Education Quality Assurance Institution Building (LPMP), Rangas Village, Banggae District.

Although the distance is up to 6 kilometers, Hamzah does not feel tired. Moreover, on the pedicab he brought his beloved mother, Nur Samiah. "Without a becak, I might not be able to go to school," said Hamzah, who claimed to have undergone the profession since he was in elementary school.

Hamzah is indeed from a poor family. His mother, Samiah only works as a traveling cake seller. Whereas Usman, his late father who died since 2014, is only a traditional fisherman. But a weak economy does not make Hamzah desperate. In between, he traveled around the city of Majene in his rickshaw to look for passengers, "In addition to my income, I also sometimes become a mason and scavenger," he said.

Although busy looking for tuition fees, the youngest of 7 siblings did not want to miss the lesson. Behind the pedicab seat, Hamzah keeps reading books. Hamzah is also quite a hobby of reading. From that experience, the Management department student plans to make a mobile library using a pedicab that he will name the Mandar Becak, "The book is from various friends and contributions from other literacy lovers," said Hamzah.

In addition, Hamzah also dreamed of making the Mandar village the aim of promoting the tribe more deeply, "so that the wider community does not misinterpret the Mandar tribe in the future," he said. The head of the UT Graduation Committee Safriansyah said the students who were graduated were from various regencies in West Sulawesi, "Of the 350 graduates 2 were Masters in Public Administration and the rest were PGSD S1 students," he said.

Muhammad Ashari