Desmond Kho
KUCHING: Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Stampin branch secretary Desmond Kho is perturbed and disheartened by Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development Minister Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah’s suggestion for stateless children, or those forced to drop out due to poverty, to consider continuing their education in centres run by volunteers.
According to Kho, who is also Batu Lintang assemblyman See Chee How’s private secretary, Fatimah’s statement was misleading and unwarranted.
“It will only obliterate the good efforts by the government and activists of non-governmental organisations who have worked tirelessly to get our Malaysian children enrolled in schools and enjoy their rights to free education.
“It will also cause confusion which may again stifle the schooling opportunities of those Malaysians found lacking in citizenship documents,” Kho, who is a lawyer by profession said today.
Kho said there should be no excuse for Malaysian children to drop out of school because of poverty because primary and secondary school education in the national schools are free.
“Dato Sri Hajah Fatimah should know better as her ministry is responsible and has done a good job in implementing the federal policy to provide monthly welfare and financial assistance to poor families to send their children to schools. Free meals are also given to the needy children in schools.
“Furthermore, it has been made clear in several occasions by the Education Ministry late last year to ensure that children found lacking in national citizenship documentation are freely enrolled into our national schools.”
Kho recalled that Deputy Minister of Education Teo Nie Ching, during her visit to Kuching in October last year had announced and clarified that the federal government had decided that children without citizenship needed only produce their birth certificates, adoption papers or court orders to enrol in government schools.
“With the clear directive of the ministry, we have found it easier to help enrol the purportedly ‘stateless children’ into our national schools this year,” said Kho.
In fact, Kho said he had helped two children lacking in proper citizenship documentation enrol into a school in Kuching.
“We would suggest that the state Minister of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development to work together with the federal government in implementing this good effort to ensure that all our Sarawakian children will be able to enjoy their rights and derive benefits from schooling under our quality national education.
“We are aware, and we applaud the good efforts by the many organisations, associations and citizens’ efforts, including the D’Wira Educational Association, which we hope that they will continue to provide pre-school education for needy children and to assist these needy children to catch up with their studies in schools.