RANAU, June 14 — The government has allocated RM20 million for the construction of a new replacement building block for the Comprehensive School 9 (K9) at Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Tibabar here, which includes administrative offices, classrooms, a library, teachers’ quarters and other facilities.
Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said that the project is a testament to the Madani Government’s commitment to improving access to education, especially in the rural areas of Sabah and Sarawak, to ensure that the best quality education can be provided for the benefit of students and the local community.
“SK Tibabar, which functions as a K9 School Programme, facilitates access to education for students in this area, while also ensuring that the issue of student dropouts can be addressed,” she said in a statement after officiating the new school building here today.
Sabah Education director Datuk Raisin Saidin was also present at the event.
The K9 School Programme is an initiative by the Ministry of Education (MOE) that provides nine years of schooling opportunities at both primary and secondary levels on the same premises, aimed at addressing the issue of student dropouts, especially in rural and challenging geographical areas, with 33 programmes currently operating nationwide, including 15 in Sabah.
Meanwhile, while speaking at the event, Fadhlina emphasised that the K-9 model school allows students to continue their studies from primary school to Form Three at the same location, thereby providing better educational opportunities for the local community.
Therefore, she urged parents to play a role in ensuring that their children do not fall behind in the national education system in line with the government’s efforts to provide education to children in the country.
“The government’s commitment to providing free education as well as the compulsory primary school education policy needs to be supported by parents’ awareness to send their children to school.
“Our children are born not only to gain a good name but with the right to receive a good education. We do not want any obstacles that prevent them from continuing their studies,” she said.
Meanwhile, when met by reporters, Fadhlina said the MOE has fully handed over the investigation to the authorities regarding the incident in Melaka involving a Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) candidate who is believed to be involved in the death of his mother and brother on Thursday (June 12).
She said that her team is now focusing on providing support to another injured victim, in addition to giving the victim’s family full space to face this difficult time.
“I just want to take this approach … we see that there is so much speculation happening right now. I think we need to give the family some time as this is heartbreaking and unexpected by anyone.
“So give the family space to carry out all the processes first, including the investigation by the authorities, and we will monitor the overall welfare of this family from time to time,” she also said.
On Thursday, a 51-year-old female teacher and her 21-year-old eldest son died, while her youngest child was severely injured, believed to have been stabbed at their home in Taman Rambai Mutiara, Bukit Rambai, Melaka. — Bernama