Jisin Nyud
SIBU: Sarawak Teachers’ Union (STU) has suggested for Miri and Rajang teaching institutes (IPG) to be fully utilised, especially for up-skilling and upgrading of school teachers.
STU president Jisin Nyud believes this will help tackle the issue of teacher shortage in Sarawak.
“Considering the feasibility of these two teaching institutes to be used as technical and vocational education and training (TVET) centres would be costly and it is still long way to go, STU would like to suggest to have them fully utilised at this moment especially for the up-skilling and upgrading of teachers not only for primary but secondary school teachers.
“Rather than waiting for the moment for the IPGs to close down which may take years, I believe that this is very useful and beneficial for the state in order to meet the shortage of teachers. Since we have lecturers in these institutes, why don’t we make full use of them,” he told The Borneo Post yesterday.
Jisin was reacting to Pakatan Harapan (PH) Sarawak secretary Alan Ling Sie Kiong’s recent statement that PH Sarawak supported the protest by NGOs and Sarawakians to scrap the proposal to close the two IPGs in Sarawak.
Ling had assured that he would bring up the matter to the attention of the new Education Minister (Dr Maszlee Malik).
On this, Jisin said: “Since the beginning of this issue, STU has always been against the closure of the two existing teaching institutes considering that the effort and struggle by our past leaders in persuading the government to fulfil the dream of the state by having one teaching institute to be located in the southern, central and northern zone of Sarawak will become history in a few years’ time.
“In addition, with the closure of Miri and Rajang teaching institutes we are worried that our dream of achieving 90 per cent local teachers cannot be achieved.
“As it was the (past) cabinet decision to turn these IPGs to TVET centres, definitely we can foresee that there will be no more intakes of trainee teachers in a few years’ time for these two teaching institutes.”
Meanwhile, Sarawak Bumiputera Teachers Association (KGBS) too had spoken out on the issue, asserting that PH Sarawak’s objection to the closing of the two IPG campuses was inconsequential if not reinforced with plans on intake of trainee teachers.
KGBS president Ahmad Malie said: “While KGBS agrees with PH’s move, KGBS also asserts for the demand to be accompanied by calls for intake of trainee teachers which will be more meaningful to increase the number of teachers in Sarawak in particular and the country in general.
“If it is just calling to retain (the IPGs) without any intake plan (of trainee teachers), the effort is deemed as less meaningful.”
Separately, alumni of Teacher Training Institutes (IPG) Sarawak had launched an online petition to revoke the previous government’s intention to close down the two IPG campuses in the state.
Sibuti MP Lukanisman Awang Sauni had said IPG Rajang and IPG Sarawak Miri campus were among the nine IPG campuses throughout the country to be closed down by the previous government administration, to be turned into technical and vocational education training (TVET) institutes.
Lukanisman agreed with the view of the alumni association that the new PH federal government review the decision.