Bario folk are placing their hope on the Education Ministry to set up a new school in their midst to enable students to study up to Form 5.
Alvin and Miri, both 13 years old, walk from their boarding house at SMK Bario to their classroom.
Malarn Carl Maran
Presently, they can only study up to Form 3 at the present school before moving to secondary schools in Marudi or Lawas to continue their studies.
A retired teacher Malarn Carl Maran, 64, said the local community had been requesting for more than 20 years to the government to set up a new school in Bario.
“The problem has always been not enough students and no proper electricity supply.
“With better road connectivity now, students from here and nearby villages such as Long Banga, Long Peluan, Lio Mato and Ba Kelalan can come to study at the school,” he said.
Carl said when the first proposal for the new school was mooted, the local community had identified a site between Pa’ Umor and Pa’ Ukat for the new school.
He said it would not be appropriate to send the students out to study in bigger towns at a young age, adding that it would be better if the students were able to complete their higher secondary education near their villages.
Carl said he was made to understand that many students had suffered ‘culture shock’ when they were transferred to secondary schools in bigger towns at a young age.
He said he was told by his friends in Lawas and Ba Kelalan that there were so many youngsters who were ‘lost’ and many started to take drugs when they were transferred to secondary schools in Trusan and Lawas.
“I have a friend in Miri who told me that our people there are ‘spoilt’ already. That is very sad.”
Besides the setting up a new secondary school, Carl also suggested that a vocational and technical college to be built in Bario to allow the local community to have proper skills training.
“There is not much distraction over here and the environment is conducive for students to study. Once the local people are trained with skills, they can get decent employment,” said.