Many dilapidated schools in Sarawak yet to be repaired

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Dato Sri Michael Manyin Jawong

KUCHING: There are still many dilapidated schools in Sarawak yet to be repaired and upgraded, contrary to Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik’s claim that his ministry has completed 90 per cent, or 452, of the 534 projects meant to repair dilapidated schools nationwide this year.

According to Sarawak Education, Science and Technological Research Minister Dato Sri Michael Manyin Jawong, only 153 – or 19.2 per cent – of the total 1,020 dilapidated schools in Sarawak have been repaired using allocations from the federal government.

He pointed out that the Ministry of Education (MoE) under the previous federal administration, had issued RM69.71 million worth of contracts to repair 20 schools in 2016, RM92.68 million worth of contracts to repair 30 schools in 2017, and RM416.576 million worth of contracts to repair 116 schools last year.

For the allocation set for last year, he said the project awards were given in February 2018, of which 50 were under Public Works Department (JKR) Sarawak, while the remaining 66 were under the MoE.

Out of that, all projects under the 50 JKR Sarawak contracts had reached completion.

In contrast, 13 of the 66 contracts under MoE remained as ‘sick projects’, said Manyin.

For this year, Manyin said RM100 million had been allocated by the Pakatan Harapan (PH)-led federal government to repair 32 schools, of which progress was under different stages of construction and should reach completion by early next year 2020.

“So far, a total of 153 dilapidated schools have been upgraded or repaired, including 43 projects under the 11th Malaysia Plan (11MP). This means only 19.2 per cent of the total dilapidated schools have been repaired using allocations from the federal government,” he said in an interview yesterday.

On the first tranche of RM350 million out of the RM1 billion contra loan payment by Sarawak government to the federal government this year, Manyin said this allocation had been disbursed for the repair and upgrading works on 37 schools, but none had reached completion yet.

Of the 37, the contracts for five schools were tendered out between August and October, those for two schools were tendered out between October and November, 17 contracts before the end of last month (November), and 13 earlier this month.

The federal government had agreed, in principle, to accept the RM1 billion loan payment by Sarawak to be used for school repairs and upgrades in the state, with the first tranche of RM350 million paid by Sarawak government in August this year.

“The second and third tranches, amounting to RM350 million and RM300 million, respectively, are expected to be disbursed in January and June of 2020. The Education Department is still in the process of identifying the schools (to be repaired/ upgraded using this fund),” said Manyin.

On a related matter, Manyin said the Sarawak government was also allocating funds for the rebuilding of schools namely SK Maludam costing RM35.765 million, and SK Ulu Segan costing RM29.5 million. Both projects are still on-going.

A sum of RM160.5 million was also allocated by the Sarawak government for the repair works on 60 schools through the Northern Corridor Development Programme under the Regional Corridor Development Authority (Recoda); a further RM21 million was allocated under Rural Transformation Initiative (RTI) for the repairs of rural schools.

“Thus, if we included the 37 schools to be repaired under the RM350-million first tranche of the RM1 billion loan repayment, and the 60 schools to be repaired under Recoda as well as the two schools being rebuilt using state funds, we would have a total 340 dilapidated schools, which would have been upgraded or repaired.

“This amounts to 33.33 per cent of the total dilapidated schools in Sarawak,” stressed the Sarawak minister.

During a talkshow broadcast on TV1 on Wednesday night, Maszlee had claimed that 90 per cent – or 452 – of the 534 projects to repair dilapidated schools nationwide had reached completion.

“The schools are not only located in Sabah and Sarawak, but also in the peninsula,” he was quoted by Bernama as having said.

During the tabling of the 2020 Budget in Parliament in October, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng announced an allocation of RM783 million to repair dilapidated schools nationwide, particularly those in Sabah and Sarawak.

It was previously reported that out of the 1,020 dilapidated schools in Sarawak, 415 comprising 383 primary and 32 secondary schools, had been classified as ‘critically dilapidated’.