PALMOILMAGAZINE, JEMBER – In a momentous academic event, Prof. Ermanto Fahamsyah was officially inaugurated as a Professor of Economic Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Jember, on Saturday (July 5, 2025). However, his inaugural speech transcended the typical ceremonial tone—it became a powerful reflection on legal justice in one of Indonesia’s most strategic sectors: palm oil.
“Why palm oil?” he began. “Because this sector drives the national economy and serves as a catalyst for rural development. Yet behind the dazzling export figures lie deep-rooted issues—inequality, deforestation, agrarian conflict, and the marginalization of smallholders.”
For Prof. Ermanto, law is not merely a tool of social control but a means of social engineering—as Roscoe Pound once described it. In the context of Indonesia’s palm oil industry, law must become a transformative force toward a fair, ecological, and sustainable system.
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He highlighted the regulatory disharmony that lies at the heart of many governance issues in the palm oil sector. Despite its significant contribution to foreign exchange earnings and employment, palm oil regulation remains fragmented across various legal domains: forestry, land affairs, environment, and trade.
“There is no single, unified legal framework that governs the palm oil industry comprehensively from upstream to downstream,” he stated, as quoted by beige-heron-208544.hostingersite.com from his inaugural speech. “This leads to overlapping regulations, inter-agency conflicts, and legal uncertainty—ultimately burdening businesses and hurting the public.”
Prof. Ermanto stressed that regulatory dissonance creates legal ambiguity and leaves room for administrative, political, and structural misuse. “When norms are not aligned, implementation becomes biased, and law enforcement loses its direction,” he noted.
He pointed out that regulatory problems are inseparable from institutional fragmentation. Numerous ministries and agencies issuing uncoordinated policies have resulted in a disjointed and often contradictory system.
“Siloed regulations are a reflection of siloed institutions,” he asserted. The solution, therefore, lies not only in drafting new legislation, but in harmonizing existing laws and restructuring the institutional framework of the palm oil sector.
Prof. Ermanto called for the creation of a coherent, integrative, and progressive legal framework—one that addresses not only issues of legality but also promotes ecological and social justice, particularly for independent smallholders who have long been marginalized.
The Pentalogy of Thought: From Dissertation to Professorship
Prof. Ermanto’s ideas stem from over a decade of academic pursuit. He described his speech as the culmination of a “Pentalogy of Scientific Thought”—five major works he has developed since 2013.
It began with his doctoral dissertation, which examined the partnership model between nucleus companies and smallholder farmers (PIR) in Banten. This model laid the groundwork for his vision of an inclusive legal framework for the palm oil industry.
In 2017, he published an article titled “The Legal Dynamics in the Formation of the Palm Oil Bill”, emphasizing the urgent need for an overarching law for the industry. This was followed by two books: “Plantation Law” (2018) and “Plantation Law: Dynamics and Development in Indonesia” (2021). In 2025, the series culminates with his speech titled “Strengthening the Legal System of Indonesia’s Palm Oil Industry.”
“This isn’t just academic output,” he said. “It’s a scholarly commitment and a national calling.”
As he concluded, Prof. Ermanto underscored the importance of law as a bridge to social justice—not merely as a control mechanism, but as a medium to reshape the relationship between state, market, and the people—particularly in managing strategic natural resources like palm oil.
“We must move away from fragmented, bureaucratic legal approaches. What we need is the courage to unite our vision, build a national consensus, and craft laws that champion ecological, social, and economic justice,” he urged.
For Prof. Ermanto, becoming a professor is not an endpoint, but the beginning of a greater responsibility: to make legal science a tool for empowerment, not restriction.
“When the law fails to deliver justice, it fails its purpose,” he concluded. (P2)
