Dr Annuar Rapaee
KUCHING (Nov 10): It is high time for a National Sports School to be built in Sarawak, said Assistant Minister for Education, Science and Technological Research Dr Annuar Rapaee.
He pointed out that the difference between State Sports School and National Sports School is that the latter is a school that are equipped with full facilities.
“That is why we really need a Sekolah Sukan Negara (National Sports School) to be built in Sarawak. In Malaysia we have five of these schools, one in Sabah, Terengganu, Pahang, Kuala Lumpur and Johor. Now one is under construction in Perlis.
“We think that Sarawak should have one of these schools because we have produced a lot of world-class athletes in Sarawak,” he said.
He was replying to a question from See Chee How (PSB-Batu Lintang) in the DUN sitting Tuesday on whether there is a plan to elevate SMK Tabuan Jaya from a State Sports School and National Sports School or Malaysian Sports School.
In his response, Dr Annuar said there is no plan to convert SMK Tabuan Jaya into a full-fledged Malaysian Sports School, as an approval from Ministry of Education (MOE) is needed to convert a State Sports School to National Sports School, or to build a new National Sports School.
“The state government under the Ministry of Youth and Sports has proposed to the to convert or elevate SMK Demak into a full-fledged National Sports School because of the facilities nearby,” he added.
However, the state government does not have an answer for the proposal yet, he added.
In his supplementary questions, See asked what would be the benefits for the students and what is the state government’s plan to help SMK Tabuan Jaya to achieve sporting excellence in the international arena.
To that, Dr Annuar said that one of the benefits of National Sports School for the students is food assistance.
“In Sekolah Sukan Negeri (State Sports School) the cost per head RM15.50 per day. In Sekolah Sukan Malaysia (Malaysian Sports School) Sabah they get RM40 per day, while in Bukit Jalil they give RM30 per day. That is a glaring difference.
“In terms of facilities, Sekolah Sukan Negeri (State Sports School) not much facilities is available, while in Sekolah Sukan Malaysia they have sports science lab, a proper gymnasium, a flexible schedule of training. Also more coaches while in Sekolah Sukan Negeri, the quota is only four. There is also no physiotherapist and nutritionist,” he said.
On top of that, Dr Annuar noted, there are a lot of competitions available for the students both at the national or international level for National Sports School.
“This allows students to be exposed in highly competitive competitions.
“We will not benefit if we do not have National Sports School in Sarawak, so we would like one to be built in Sarawak,” he said.
In the meantime, collaboration between the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the various sports agencies in the state will help SMK Tabuan Jaya in terms of development of coaches and training to students.
“More importantly improving the facilities at SMK Tabuan Jaya,” he added.