Maszlee says to personally monitor repair of dilapidated schools

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KUCHING: Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik says he will personally monitor the long-running dilapidated schools issue in Sarawak to ensure that all repair and rebuilding works are completed on schedule.

He said 32 dilapidated schools in Sarawak had so far been identified for repair, latest by
Dec 16, utilising the RM100 million allocation from the Education Ministry.

“I am closely monitoring all these projects by attaching their latest development progress in my office to make sure every cent of taxpayers’ money is used for the purpose.”

He also said the Ministry of Education was coordinating
with the Public Works Department in making sure that those projects were not only
completed within the stipulated timeframe, but also of good quality and meet all specifications.

“We do not want projects that are completed but do not meet our specifications or quality standards,” he said during a visit to SMK Sungai Tapang in Kota Sentosa here yesterday.

When asked on the mechanism to implement projects involving dilapidated schools in the state, Maszlee said it would involve three parties, namely, Public Works Department,
Ministry of Education, and Ministry of Finance, while the Sarawak government
would assist in monitoring the projects.

As for the 37 dilapidated schools identified for repair using the RM350 million fund from the federal government, he said the repair works for seven schools had already been tendered, while the remaining 30 schools would be tendered at the end of the year.

The Sarawak government paid RM350 million to Putrajaya as part of the RM1-billion
contra loan payment and the same amount was allocated to Sarawak for the repair and rebuilding of dilapidated schools in the state.

Maszlee also said the Ministry of Education would ensure all projects under its purview would be completed, and intervention measures initiated immediately if any ‘sick projects’ were found, especially projects that were delayed under the previous Barisan National federal government.

“The Ministry of Education places great importance in providing quality education and infrastructure to our students.

“As I always said, we should always be ‘above politics’ when it comes to education matters. Political differences need to be set aside to protect the interests of both students and teachers,” he said.