Putrajaya shoots down Tamil secondary school proposal in Penang

BY LOOI SUE-CHERN
FEBRUARY 19, 2014

The Penang government today expressed disappointment that its application to set up the first Tamil secondary school in the country in Bagan Dalam in Butterworth has been rejected.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng (pic) said the state's sincere offer to set aside a piece of land for the building of the school was not considered by Putrajaya or Barisan Nasional's Indian-based party, MIC.

"We are only asking for one Tamil secondary school in the whole country. It will not jeopardise anyone.

"One Tamil secondary school is not excessive. We would not be able to sustain more than one anyway," he told a press conference at his Komtar office today.

Lim said he will make an appeal to Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, before taking the matter to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

Asked what other options the state has in pursuing the matter further apart from going to Muhyiddin or Najib, Lim said the state cannot do much as the setting up of the school, even as a private institution, would require a license from Putrajaya.

"We also would not have the funds," said Lim, who is the Bagan MP.

The state was informed via a letter dated January 8 from Education Department director-general Datuk Dr Khair Mohamad Yusof that there are no provision under the Education Act 1996 for the setting up Tamil secondary schools.

The letter stated that the act only provides for national secondary schools to cater to the education needs of all races in the country.

Lim said he wrote to the ministry last year about the application several times, explaining that a Tamil secondary school will cater to the education needs of the Indian community in Bagan Dalam, which makes up 24% of the total constituents, but the state never received feedback until Khair's letter.

He said Deputy Education Minister P. Kamalanathan was not telling the truth when he reportedly denied receiving any letters about the application from the Penang government.

"He said there were no letters from Penang, but then the education department has actually sent us a reply. Kamalanathan should not lie," he added.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister II Dr P. Ramasamy, who is also state education exco, said the state had even appealed to BN parties to put politics aside and give their support for the setting up the school.

However, he said even the Indian-based parties did not voice their support and it was the Chinese educationist group Dong Zong that backed the state's proposal instead.

"I think the federal government fears that this will set a precedent and other places may request for Tamil secondary schools too," he said.

To this, Lim quipped: "No. I think if we have it in Penang, then they can forget about Penang." – February 19, 2014.

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/putrajaya-shoots-down-tamil-secondary-school-proposal-in-penang

Support Tamil primary schools, parents urged

THE PENANG Hindu Association is urging the Indian community to help support Tamil primary schools by sending their children there.

Association deputy president P. Murugiah said there had been a reduction in the number of pupils enrolled in Tamil primary schools.

“The existence of Tamil primary schools is due to the support given by parents who send their children to these schools,” he told a press conference at the association’s booth in conjunction with Thaipusam celebrations in Scotland Road on Friday.

Penang Tamil Schools Special Committee chairman Datuk Dr K. Anbalakan said that at present, there were 28 Tamil primary schools in Penang.

“Twenty-one of the schools are located on the mainland while seven are on the island,” he added.

“Of the schools on the mainland, about 16 of them are in estates.

“The low enrolment in these schools is partly because many estate dwellers keep moving to bigger towns, where their children will attend schools closer to their homes there,” he explained.

It was the responsibility of the Federal Government to find land to relocate Tamil schools from the estates to town, he said.

Dr Anbalakan added that there was a need for a Tamil secondary school in Penang.

“Those who would like to further their Tamil studies from primary school level are unable to do so at the moment.

“They can further their Tamil studies at only university level,” Dr Anbalakan said.

“Tamil language should be included in the main academic curriculum in schools and not just be taught as an elective subject after school hours, as practised in some schools.

“Some schools even leave it to their headmasters to decide whether Tamil language should be taught,” he added.

Murugiah said the association had submitted a petition containing 10,000 signatures to Deputy Education Minister II P. Kamalanathan on Nov 28 requesting for a Tamil secondary school to be built in Penang.

Increase Enrolment First, Says Deputy Minister

Pic : The Malay MailBUKIT MERTAJAM: The Indian community has been urged to enrol their children in Tamil primary schools before requesting for a Tamil secondary school.

Deputy Education Minister P. Kamalanathan said: “At the moment, the enrolment in Tamil schools in Penang is the lowest in the country. The community should consider enrolling their children in Tamil schools to make up the numbers before demanding for a secondary school.”

He also asked the Penang government to play its part.

Kamalanathan said this after visiting SK Pendidikan Khas at Alma yesterday.

However, he refused to elaborate when asked on the status of proposals to introduce Tamil secondary schools.

In September, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng sent a letter to Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yasin, who is also the education minister, to assist in setting up a Tamil secondary school in the state.

Lim said the state was willing to allocate land to build the first Tamil secondary school in the country.