S'WAK POLLS Sarawak PKR brushed off the election promise of Chief Minister Adenan Satem on improving education in the state, saying rural students are still being taught in “dilapidated' schools.
Its state PKR chief Baru Bian said the BN-led Sarawak government has done nothing much to improve the situation despite billions spent on education.
"After decades of BN rule, our rural students are still being taught in dilapidated schools, many of them with no proper electricity or water supply.
"The government can’t even offer our young generation decent facilities for a basic primary education, yet BN is not embarrassed to keep making the same promise election after election," Baru said in a statement today.
He cited the 2014 auditor-general’s report which stated that eight out of 10 Sarawak schools are in a state of disrepair, with schoolchildren studying in termite-infested buildings or with leaking sewage.
He also highlighted the federal government's Education Blueprint 2013-2025 which stated that "critical repairs and upgrades will be completed across all 1,608 schools with critical needs" in the state.
He alleged the situation has not changed much in 2016, pointing to his constituency of Ba’ Kelalan where 11 out of 12 schools are still in a serious state of disrepair.
"SK Ba’ Kelalan, SK Long Luping and SK Long Sukang are still depending on old generators for their power supply and SK Long Sebangang suffers from lack of water.
"Two pieces of land in Long Semadoh had been officially acquired in 2003 to build SK Long Semadoh and SMK Long Semadoh but up to today, there are no signs that these schools will be built," said Baru.
He said the education blueprint shows that Sarawak is second last in performance in the country for UPSR and SPM examinations in 2011.
"In Sarawak, it is not uncommon that children start primary school without first attending preschool. I have been reliably informed that at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas), fewer than half of the students are Sarawakians.
"Why are there not more local students getting an education there?" he asked.
Baru said that without a good foundation, the youths of Sarawak would not be able to handle advanced education, even if it was offered.
He urged the BN-led government to set up preschools in rural areas, build modern boarding schools with proper facilities and set up more colleges for vocational and skills training.
"Our younger generation deserves much more than the dilapidated schools they have been putting up with for so long," he said.
He added that if the BN-led government could not do a proper job, he promised a sea change if the opposition were given a more substantial mandate to push for improvements, or even a chance to rule.
