Manyin (fourth right, back row) in a photo call with voucher recipients from SK Tepoi. Also in the photo is Yayasan Sarawak deputy director Ellen Maniam Enggang (on Manyin’s right)
TEBEDU: There is no quarrel between Sarawak government and the federal government on the contra loan payment to facilitate allocation of funds for repairs of dilapidated schools in the state, said Education, Science and Technological Research Minister Dato Sri Michael Manyin Jawong.
He pointed out that Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg had agreed for Sarawak government to pay back RM350 million so that the same amount can be allocated to the state for the repairs and rebuilding of schools this year.
Stressing that it was better to resolve matters through official meetings than to slug it out through the media, Manyin revealed that officials from his ministry accompanied by the State Financial Ministry (SFS) held a meeting last week in Putrajaya with officers from the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and Ministry of Education (MOE) to finalise the details on the allocation.
“It is more or less finalised now. Hopefully, the disbursement of the RM350 million is on time this year because this allocation has to go through the Parliament first for approval.
“The state government has already approved the amount to be paid in contra to the loan from the federal government. The Chief Minister has already written to the Minister of Finance, and he agreed on the terms and conditions. This (allocation for repairs of dilapidated schools) is of course should be over and above the annual budget (from the federal government),” he said.
Manyin, who is also Tebedu assemblyman, mentioned these to the media after he officiated at the presentation of Yayasan Sarawak’s school uniform vouchers to 379 recipients from two secondary schools and 24 primary schools in Tebedu today.
On Monday, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng through a media statement insisted that the allocation of RM350 million can only be achieved when the Sarawak government pays back its loan of the same amount to the federal government.
According to Lim, the amount of RM350 million is the first phase of loan payment amounting to RM1 billion from Sarawak.
Lim had said that the federal government agreed in principle to accept the RM1 billion loan payment by Sarawak to be used for school repairs which are also subject to the prescribed four legal mechanisms which were agreed by both sides.
Manyin said that some of the RM350 million allocation, once approved, will be used to build centralised schools in rural areas, which have better facilities and more conducive learning environment to boost academic performances of rural students.
He revealed that the first of such schools will be SK Gahat Mawang in Tebedu district while there are also two other proposals to build centralised schools in Betong.