KUCHING, July 27: Julau MP Larry Sng is utterly disappointed with the indifference shown by Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik and his deputy, Teo Nie Ching, towards fixing the problems facing rural students.
Concerned with the welfare of rural schools, especially those in his constituency, Sng pursued the matter with Maszlee and Teo on the sidelines of Parliament.
“So, I tried to talk to YB Mazlee about getting the 22 schools in my area to be connected to the main grid and to do a proper wiring for the safety of the students and teachers.
“He (Maszlee) agreed with me, but he said this would be resolved in the long term. Upon hearing that, I was so disappointed and upset,” Sng told DayakDaily today.
Failing to convince Maszlee, Sng thought he would have a better chance with Teo, but the outcome was worse.
“Instead of talking to me to know more about Sarawak schools, YB Teo just turned away and headed to eat durians.
“Is eating durians more important than the educational affairs of our rural children?” asked Sng.
Sng said he believed his proposal to connect 22 of the 37 schools in Julau to the main grid was feasible and affordable. He estimated it would cost about RM200,000 to connect each of these schools to the grid, and the monthly bill would be about RM500 each. Currently, these schools reply on generator sets for electricity, and the government is paying RM20,000 per month for the fuel for each school. It excludes the cost of maintenance and labour.
“Fixing rural schools in Sarawak is a priority. If the problem can be fixed with not an expensive sum, it should be carried out as soon as possible.
“The Education Ministry should not delay anymore with regards to fixing the problems of our rural schools,” said Sng. — DayakDaily
