Dong Zong lauds govt’s more SJKCs plan

THE plan by the government to go ahead and build 10 new SJKCs and relocate six others to bigger venues has received praises from educationist group Dong Zong, reports Sin Chew Daily.

Its president Tan Tai Kim said he was comforted by MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong’s recent announcement on the plan, adding that it would solve the problem of overcrowded classrooms and traffic congestion at present schools.

The move was much lauded as it would resume the original plan, which had earlier been put on hold during the Pakatan Harapan administration.

It was earlier reported that the plan, known as the “10+6” plan, was one which MCA had gotten approval for from the government in 2017.

Dr Wee, who is now part of the incumbent government, announced last week that the plan will be restarted.

He had criticised the Pakatan Harapan government’s dismissal of the construction of SJKC Sim Mow Yu, a school among those under the 10+6 plan, on the grounds that there was another SJKC less than 2km away from the proposed building site.

Similarly, Tan also criticised the excuse given by the previous administration for dismissing plans to build new schools.

He pointed out that according to the 1999 school planning guideline from the federal government, a Chinese vernacular school was allowed to be built as long as a housing area has a population exceeding 3,000 people, and that the school must be within 0.4km and 0.8km of the housing area or should not exceed a 10-minute travel time.

This, Tan said, was starkly different from the arbitrary 2km rule imposed by the former government.

“Chinese education has always been a societal movement. The biggest participants have always been the grassroots in Chinese society and Chinese educators.

“We need to promote the development of Chinese education and prevent its destruction from outside forces,” Tan said.

> The daily also reported that Hong Kong singer Grace Ip recently encountered a harrowing experience where she was hounded by a man armed with a pair of scissors.

The 40-year-old singer posted a video of the encounter on Instagram, which showed a man holding a pair of scissors and a packet of lemon juice knocking repeatedly on her car window.

“What do you want?” a panicked Ip was heard saying in the video.

Choosing to ignore her, the man proceeded to leave the packet of lemon juice on top of her sideview mirror.

During a phone interview, Ip said she was in the car waiting for her husband Eric Kwok who was getting them drinks.

“I asked the man what he wanted, and he just scolded me, saying this was his spot. He wanted me to leave. It was so strange,” she said.

Fearing for her safety, Ip did not dare make eye contact with him throughout the encounter.

“He had a terrifying facial expression. I was lucky I managed to lock my doors,” she said.

Ip debuted as a singer in 1997 and ventured into acting since the 2000s.