Julau MP lauds Education Ministry’s allocation for dilapidated schools
MIRI: Julau MP Larry Sng Wei Shen welcomes the announcement by Ministry of Education to kick start linking up schools to nearby grid system in Sarawak with an allocation of RM400 million and another RM35.4 million for repairing dilapidated schools this year.
He commended the speedy response by the new Pakatan Harapan federal government to issues regarding the wellbeing and needs of students, teachers and staff of rural schools.
He brought the issue to Minister of Education Dr Maszlee Malik and Deputy Minister of Education Teo Nie Ching , pointing out that such schools should be given priority.
Sng said 22 of the 27 schools in his Julau constituency could be connected to the state grid system and this would result in costs savings to the ministry which is currently paying RM20,000 monthly for fuel to run generators in each school. “I am happy that the issue has been resolved as ultimately, it is the rural people, especially Dayak students, who will benefit.”
Dr Mazlee addressed the issue in parliament in his ministerial reply on school repairs and grid connection in Sarawak which the Sarawak government had offered to undertake with its own funds to be reimbursed by the federal government later.
In his Facebook post yesterday of the summary to his answer in Parliament on July 31, Maszlee said the Education Ministry had provided a special allocation of RM35.74 million to Sarawak for urgent repair and maintenance works on 853 dilapidated schools this year.
The ministry is working on electricity supply to schools in Sarawak in four phases at the cost of RM400 million which include installing electricity grid to nearby schools as well as installing solar hybrid systems.
Based on the Treasury Department’s directive, works to connect schools without electricity supply in Sarawak to main grid have been assigned to Public Works Department (JKR Sarawak).