Leading by Example: Ustadz Raden Usman’s Commitment to Involved Fatherhood in Mambalan
20 April 2026
Raden Usman (32) is a father of two young daughters, aged seven and three-and-a-half, residing in Mambalan Village, West Lombok. In his daily life as an Ustadz (means teacher in Arabic) who facilitates religious study groups and delivers sermons, he realized that his knowledge of parenting was still insufficient. He felt that the BKB Father’s Class (Kelas Ayah) was the perfect opportunity to complement his existing religious knowledge with practical parenting insights.
As a father raising a toddler and a child approaching adolescence, Raden Usman observed many pressing challenges in his community that required a deeper understanding of childcare. He noted various issues, ranging from the struggles of single parents and children being raised away from their primary caregivers to more systemic problems like child marriage and parental neglect. These poor parenting practices often resulted in cases of stunting, malnutrition, and poor health at birth. The impact on local youth was equally concerning; many children were becoming more addicted to their smartphones than to learning or reciting the al-Quran, leading to a visible decline in the overall quality of development among the younger generation.
This reality fueled his enthusiasm for the BKB Father’s Class. He was heartened to see other fathers in his village equally eager to learn from the materials presented by the family planning field worker (PKB), Ibu Sri Ayuningsih. One of the most significant lessons he took to heart was the idea that a child’s good character begins with a great father. He learned that to foster such character, a father must lead by example. He noted that many gifted children lose their motivation because they lack proper guidance—for instance, parents who tell their children to do good while they themselves consume alcohol, or those who demand their children study but never take the time to accompany them to their lessons.
Driven by the importance of cultivating exemplary father figures in his village, Ustadz Raden Usman has committed himself wholeheartedly to the BKB program. He has expressed his willingness to serve as an administrator and a facilitator for the classes. Furthermore, he has offered his own religious study center as a venue for future Father’s Class sessions. He explained that while the center is used for Quranic recitations from Monday to Friday, the weekend sessions—which feature lectures by senior scholars (Tuan Guru)—provide an ideal platform to integrate BKB parenting topics into the sermons. He plans to coordinate closely with the volunteer coordinators and the PKB officers to make this vision a reality, ensuring that spiritual guidance and practical parenting go hand in hand for the betterment of his community.
Author: Zamroni Rangga Putrawan│Editor: Annisa Hanifa│Photo: Plan Indonesia/Zamroni Rangga Putrawan
