Axing plans to build new Chinese schools ‘unacceptable’

THE announcement by Education Minister Maszlee Malik to halt the construction of eight Chinese primary schools (SJKCs), approved by the previous administration because of supposed financial constraints is totally unacceptable. Is this his own opinion or is this a Cabinet decision? In a government committed to inclusion and transparency, what possible rationale could there be for putting the brakes on such a small yet critically important project?

Ever since the announcement by the new Government that our national debt stands at RM1 trillion rather than RM685bil, we have watched the ritual of “patriotic” Malaysians dutifully contributing to the Tabung Harapan fund. Even a little boy’s piggy bank was sacrificed at this new altar of “hope”!

First, there is dispute between economists as to the actual size of the national debt depending on whether we include government guarantees and lease payments under public-private partnerships.

Did the former Governor of Bank Negara, Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz include these items during her term as governor and especially during Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s term from 1981 to 2003.

Two important issues need clarifying here; (i) how will such a “Save Malaysia Fund” be utilised? and (ii) who are best suited to lead this noble drive to “save Malaysia”?

A little boy sacrificing his piggy bank to plug the national debt hole is certainly heart-wrenching if not a ludicrous spectacle.

During the election campaign, Pakatan Harapan made it very clear that they can solve the economic problems of Malaysia as long as they are in charge.

After GE14, the new Finance Minister reiterated the fact that the new Government can solve all the accounting problems despite the abolition of GST. They could even pull RM40mil out of the hat to pay for televising the World Cup.

Then again, surely the wealthiest persons in the Council of Eminent Persons (CEP) could easily contribute towards plugging this debt hole rather than let the little boy sacrifice his piggy bank? But whoever heard of the world’s wealthiest persons contributing to plug their country’s national debt?

Most of these occasional philanthropists employ smart accountants to evade the local taxes and to invest in offshore tax havens never mind contribute to plugging a national debt hole!

So unless the Government speci- fies the specific purpose of this so-called “Save Malaysia Fund”, who knows how it will be spent? This is Transparency 101.

Now the new Education Minister tells us that even the eight Chinese schools approved by the previous administration will have to be sacrificed due to mounting debt.

For the benefit of those Malaysians who are not aware, let’s look at the facts of the matter starting with the statistics on the number of schools in the country.

At Independence in 1957, there already existed 1,350 Chinese primary schools to serve a Chinese population of 2.3 million. Yet today there are only 1,298 such schools to serve the current Chinese population of 6.5 million as well as the families of the nearly 100,000 non-Chinese enrolled pupils.

With a total of nearly 8,000 primary schools in the country, the glaring need for new Chinese primary schools has never been more urgent.

I suggest the new Education Minister and the Prime Minister visit some of our Chinese primary schools to understand the appalling conditions of overcrowded classrooms which cannot be beneficial for our children’s education.

Perhaps they will see for themselves whether in fact the majority of the Chinese Malaysians are welloff compared to those in SRK schools.

During the 80s, our children were already cooped up 50 to a class. Does the new Education Minister intend to do something about teacher-student ratio in SRJK schools and how will he go about doing this without building new schools or allocating more land for schools’ expansion?

How much does it cost to build one primary school? RM10mil perhaps? So it would cost perhaps RM100mil to build these eight new Chinese primary schools. But as with most of these schools, the Chinese community would end up subsidising the cost of their construction through community fund-raising initiatives.

Perhaps the richest man in Asia, and a member of the CEP, Robert Kuok can be coaxed to donate RM100mil to build these eight Chinese primary schools when a little boy can give away all his piggy bank savings to save the country?

Then again, compare this sum with the amount of unpaid PTPTN loans.

According to the PTPTN chairman, the monthly collection for PTPTN loans for May 2018 alone dropped by almost RM100mil.

The borrowers were apparently adopting a wait-and-see attitude to see if the new Government would follow through on its pledge to allow borrowers who earn below RM4,000 to delay repaying their loan. For the benefit of Malaysians who are concerned about saving Malaysia from the debt hole, in 2015, unpaid PTPTN loans totalled RM8.49bil.

We hope the Government will do the right thing and not sacrifice these new Chinese primary schools, and put an end to the community’s decades-long wait for new schools.

For too long, education under the Barisan administration was politicised. Let the PH Government show that their new government will no longer treat education like a political football and new schools will be built based on the needs of the particular community in the area.

The education of our children should be seen as an investment and not a cost. Many parents have sacrificed their family assets for the sake of their children’s education.

The enlightened intellectuals in Pakatan Harapan should ponder this Confucius saying: “Education breeds confidence. Confidence breeds hope. Hope breeds peace.”