988 posts available but 200 to be axed

Temporary teachers face termination of their services despite the state needing more than 900 teachers by March

KUCHING: More than 200 temporary local teachers throughout Sarawak will have their services terminated effective March 15 dampening efforts to achieve the 90:10 ratio of local teachers to those from other states by 2018.

This development came as a shock to the affected teachers and schools as Minister of Women, Welfare and Community Wellbeing Datuk Fatimah Abdullah was quoted in The Borneo Post report on Jan 27, as saying there were 988 vacancies for teachers in the state, which must be filled by March.

Fatimah, who keeps a watching brief on education for the state, had said the state had written to the Education Ministry to give Sarawak the power to recruit local graduates in the open market since education fell under the purview of the federal government.

Once the state had the authority, the state Education Department would be tasked to

We are all graduates holding a degree in education, and we feel we deserve the chance to serve in schools in Sarawak and continue teaching as our profession. — Affected temporary teacher

do the recruitment. Based on latest statistics released by her (Fatimah), locals made up 88.9 per cent of teachers in Sarawak.

A letter made available to thesundaypost yesterday listed 210 temporary teachers who would be terminated.

Bintulu District is the most affected with 33 temporary teachers to be terminated, followed by Miri District (24), Sibu District (19), Subis District (13), Kapit District (12), and Betong District (11).

The list also showed that the services of six temporary teachers at SMK Bakun in Belaga District, would also be terminated, as well as the termination of other temporary teachers in rural and interior schools throughout Sarawak. One of the affected temporary teachers told thesundaypost yesterday that the actual number of those terminated might rise to 239 based on those recruited and served as ‘Guru Interim Gred DC41’ from March 21 last year and who were posted to various schools in Sarawak.

She said they were all sourced from the ‘open market’ (those who have graduated from other public or private higher learning institutes other than the official teachers’ training institutes).

“We are all graduates holding a degree in education, and we feel we deserve the chance to serve in schools in Sarawak and continue teaching as our profession.

“We have been teaching for one year. The circular stating that our services will be terminated is putting us in a limbo. We are not certain of our future now,” she lamented.

The teacher added that the previous chief minister the late Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem had even mentioned that temporary teachers sourced from the open market would be considered to ensure the target of 90:10 ratio of local teachers to those from other states could be achieved by 2018.

“We have been hoping that we will be recruited on a permanent basis. We, nevertheless, appreciate the opportunity given to us to serve as temporary teachers as we teach and guide the younger generation and complement the teachers at schools we were posted to.

“Even at schools where we are posted to now, we found out that they have vacant posts. It will be more challenging for these schools and their existing teachers if these vacancies were not filled,” she said.

Adenan, in his winding-up speech at the State Legislative Assembly sitting on Nov 30 last year, mentioned that those temporary teachers from the open market would be considered from time-to-time and must obtain the Diploma in Education while teaching to ensure the 90:10 ratio is achieved.