A slap for detractors of vernacular schools - FMT

February 20, 2014

FMT LETTER: From S Param, via e-mail

Tamil is said to be one of the longest surviving languages in the world. It has been described as
the only language of contemporary India which is recognisably continuous with classical past and having one of the richest literature in the world. Tamil literature has existed for over 2000 years
and the earliest epigraphic records are said to be found on rock edits and hero stones dating to
5th century BC.

The Sangam  litterature which has been described as the earliest period of Tamil literature is said
to be dated from ca.300 BC- AD 300. Tamil language inscriptions written c.1st century BC and
2nd century AD have been discovered in Eygpt, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The variety and quality of
classical Tamil literature has led to its being described as one of the great classical traditions and literature of the world.(Wikepedia)

Malaysia is one of the few countries outside of India that has provided a conducive environment and support for this oldest language in the world to flourish. The existence of more than 500 odd Tamil primary schools in the country many of which are fully aided by the state is a testimony of the government’s sincere effort in promoting and sustaining the language among the Tamil speaking population.

The recent announcements of the Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak that several new Tamil schools
will be built and more funds will be made available for Tamil schools indicates the  government’s willingness in meeting the Indian community’s desire to improve Tamil language education in the country. Despite the many political challenges it is indeed heartening to note that the government
is steadfast in its promise to safeguard the existence of vernacular schools in the country.

The Indian community especially the Tamil speaking Indians and others who have shown great interest and support for the language are indeed grateful to the PM for the financial pledge and
support. This augurs well for the government and the future of Tamil schools in the country.

MIC which has been in the fore front in championing the Tamil schools issues for ages should
take the lead by setting up a special committee comprising of academics, community leaders and 
NGOs to draw up a blueprint for Tamil education. This special committee should among others
also look into the recent proposal to set up the first Tamil   Secondary School in the country.

Having said that the time has come for those who take pride in Tamil language to join forces to
stand up against certain individuals who are calling for the abolishment of Tamil schools in the country. It is understandable those who are not familiar with Tamil and its contribution to the world
and the Indian community at large to perceive it differently. However, it is indeed saddening to note another Indian who happened to be a BN coalition party leader painting a very negative picture of
Tamil schools in country.

I don’t know what this particular politician is up to. He has been known in the past to stir up unnecessary issues with regards to Tamil schools. This time around his moronic statements about Tamil schools has somewhat riled up the Indian community. However the timely intervention of the
PM in favour of Tamil schools recently has somewhat help to neutralise the issue. Many view the
PM’s announcement of incentives and financial allocation to Tamil schools as a slap to those who
are calling for the abolishment of vernacular schools.

The time has come for the government to view those who are calling for the closure of Tamil and Chinese school as seditious. Appropriate legal action should be taken against such individuals or groups as it is a deliberate attempt to stir up ill-feelings and tension among the multi-racial peace loving population.

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.

Under-the-trees learning for these Tamil children

Malaysiakini 
11:16AM Jan 3, 2014

Under-the-trees learning for these Tamil children

Some 20 students of the Seaport Tamil primary school (SJK Tamil Seaport) are spending their school days this year studying, on their own, under trees on the open ground as their parents demand the re-opening of the Kelana Jaya school that was abruptly shut down late last month.

The parents are refusing to accept the Education Ministry’s relocation order on the 80-year-old Tamil school to a new block in Kampung Lindungan in Subang that has been given the same name, which they say is too far away and inconvenient for them.

"If this school goes, there will be no vernacular Tamil school in Kelana Jaya and Lembah Subang at all," school’s Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) chairperson V Kumar said today.

Rising living costs, Kumar said, would mean that many of the parents, who are low income earners, would not be able to afford the daily 9km journey to send and pick up their children from the new school building.

The parents also pointed to difficulties securing school bus transportation to send their children to the new school.

The ministry had told the parents that the Kelana Jaya land, which belongs to state government body Selangor State Development Authority (PKNS), was been sold to a private developer, but land searches done by the parents reveal that the land is in the name of PKNS.

The disgruntled parents, who have been opposing possible relocation of the school for several years now, want the state government to intervene in order to keep the school at its present site.

The school building has been locked up by the headmistress, leaving parents to leave their children on plastic chairs at an adjacent open ground compound, with no teachers available to teach them.

No black-and-white confirmation 

Kumar said that as the PTA chair, he was only notified of the relocation plan on Nov 9, after a meeting with the state education department officials, during which he registered his opposition to the proposed move.

"Back then they told me that those who wish to stay in that school, this can be arranged for. They said they would write a letter to me," Kumar said.

"But until now, there was no letter. Even the relocation, the headmistress called me abruptly on Dec 19 and just said that they are shifting schools," he added.

The parents have not received any black-and-white confirmation from the ministry about the reasons behind the school relocation either.

PKR's Kelana Jaya MP Wong Chen (right) said that he would assist the residents in getting answers from the Selangor state government after he visited the school today.

"It is not appropriate for the state not to have given any answer to these residents. I think this is a case of miscommunication. It is important to keep the issue alive," Wong said, referring to several signed petitions already sent by the parents to the Selangor Menteri Besar's office back in 2012.

Wong, however, said that he had just been made aware of the issue and would need to establish the full picture before taking further action.

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.

Menjual SJKT

MARCH 11, 2013

Uthaya Sankar SB berkarya dalam Bahasa Malaysia. Beliau adalah presiden Kumpulan Sasterawan Kavyan (Kavyan) dan pemilik tunggal Perunding Media, Motivasi dan Penerbitan Uthaya. Selain menulis, membaca dan bercakap, beliau juga suka menonton filem.

11 MAC — Sewaktu saya menemui Puan Parameswari untuk berbual-bual dengannya, saya tidak menyangka bahawa pelbagai rahsia hitam akan terbongkar.

Tujuan asal saya bertemu dengan wanita berumur 55 tahun itu di Siru Kambam adalah untuk mendapatkan maklumat mengenai Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan (Tamil) Ladang Siru Kambam. Maklumat berkenaan bagi menyiapkan suatu tugasan di kolej.

“SJKT Ladang Siru Kambam ini hampir pupus pada tahun 1996,” kata wanita itu yang berpengalaman mengajar di beberapa sekolah Tamil sejak tahun 1985.

Tentu sahaja saya sedikit terkejut dan amat berminat untuk mengetahui apa yang dimaksudkan oleh guru berkenaan. Walaupun tugasan yang diberikan oleh pensyarah hanya membawa 10 markah, saya berminat untuk menimba lebih daripada sekadar markah itu.

“Boleh puan tolong huraikan lebih lanjut?” saya bertanya sambil bersiap-sedia mencatatkan maklumat yang bakal dikongsikannya.

“Kisah ini bermula pada tahun 1996,” Parameswari memulakan cerita sambil tangannya menbelek-belek fail tebal berisi pelbagai maklumat berkaitan SJKT dan Bahasa Tamil sejak lebih dua puluh tahun dahulu.

Pertemuan untuk mendapatkan maklumat asas bertukar menjadi sesi pendedahan yang menggemparkan.Menurut cerita wanita yang berasal dari Ipoh itu, pelbagai usaha licik diatur secara penuh bijak dan strategik oleh beberapa pihak dalam usaha memastikan SJKT Ladang Siru Kambam ditutup.

“Mengapa? Bukankah macam-macam perkara sedang dilakukan oleh parti politik, pertubuhan bukan kerajaan (NGO) dan pihak sekolah sendiri untuk memastikan SJKT terus kekal di negara ini?” Demikian saya bertanya apabila menyedari wanita itu terdiam dan wajahnya sayu.

“Demikianlah andaian, harapan dan pemahaman masyarakat umum. Akan tetapi, apa yang berlaku dalam realiti adalah sebaliknya. Adik jangan terkejut dengan pendedahan yang bakal saya lakukan. Tapi saya bukan membuat tuduhan atau fitnah. Semua kenyataan saya adalah berdasarkan fakta dan dokumen bertulis,” beliau menegaskan seketika kemudian selepas mengesat air mata.

Kisah yang disampaikan oleh guru itu sedikit memeranjatkan dan mungkin sukar dipercayai. Bagaimanapun, beliau menunjukkan pelbagai dokumen dan bukti-bukti berupa surat-surat bagi mengesahkan ceritanya.

Pada tahun 1996, terdapat hanya 36 murid di SJKT Ladang Siru Kambam, Taiping. Jumlah murid yang sedikit itu cuba dijadikan alasan untuk menutup sekolah berkenaan. 

Beberapa ibu bapa yang prihatin cuba mengadu kepada Guru Besar tetapi individu terbabit pula tidak menunjukkan minat bagi memastikan sekolah berkenaan terus wujud.

“Tak perlulah kita semua risau. Sekolah Tamil memang tak ada masa depan di negara ini. Kalau sekolah ini ditutup dan anda semua masih mahu menghantar anak-anak ke sekolah Tamil, hantar saja ke SJKT lain. Janganlah cuba melawan arus pembangunan.”

Menurut Parameswari, beliau turut terkejut apabila mendengar pandangan yang dikemukakan Guru Besar dalam pertemuan bersama-sama sekumpulan ibu bapa terbabit. Bayangkan apabila seorang Guru Besar SJKT sendiri tidak menunjukkan minat dan kesungguhan mempertahankan sekolah Tamil.

“Saya cuba juga berbincang dengan guru-guru lain. Akan tetapi, mereka turut bersikap pasif. Bagi mereka, tidak menjadi masalah jika SJKT Ladang Siru Kambam ditutup kerana mereka akan dipindahkan ke sekolah lain,” Parameswari bercerita sambil saya berusaha membuat catatan.

Tugasan asal saya adalah untuk menulis esei mengenai sejarah sebuah sekolah. Akan tetapi, nampak gayanya, maklumat yang saya peroleh adalah lebih daripada sekadar maklumat biasa. Tambahan, wanita yang saya wawancara mempunyai puluhan fail dan ratusan buku catatan berisi maklumat lengkap berkaitan Bahasa Tamil dan 524 SJKT di seluruh negara.

“Tidak adakah sesiapa yang menghubungi parti politik?” Saya bertanya kerana sering membaca di akhbar Tamil mengenai usaha parti-parti politik tertentu yang khabarnya memperjuangkan Bahasa Tamil, budaya Tamil, sekolah Tamil dan segala yang “Tamil”.

Parameswari ketawa lepas sebaik mendengar soalan saya. Kemudian segera membelek-belek sebuah fail dan menunjukkan beberapa foto serta keratan akhbar dan salinan memo bertulis tangan.

Agak memeranjatkan bahawa Pertubuhan Politik India (PPI) cawangan Siru Kambam yang kononnya memperjuangkan nasib sekolah Tamil — dan segala yang “Tamil” — turut terlibat dalam konspirasi licik ini!

“Adik jangan lupa bahawa SJKT Ladang Siru Kambam terletak di lokasi strategik dan nilai tanah itu naik secara mendadak sejak pertengahan 1990-an. Maka, jika sekolah itu berjaya ditutup dan tanah berkenaan dijual, banyak pihak yang akan untung,” katanya sambil jari menjentik senarai nama yang dimaksudkan.

Akan tetapi, setahu saya, SJKT Ladang Siru Kambam terletak di bawah tabung amanah Kuil Sivaperuman. Masakan PPI boleh masuk campur dan jawatankuasa kuil yang merupakan kelompok “Tamil/Hindu tegar” akan membiarkan sahaja.

“Lihat foto ini. Adik mungkin tidak kenal wanita yang berdiri penuh mesra dengan Presiden PPI. Dia bukan isteri beliau tetapi kini memiliki harta yang cukup banyak di beberapa lokasi terpilih di Taiping. Dan ini pula pengerusi jawatankuasa kuil yang diamanahkan menjaga SJKT Ladang Siru Kambam.”

Saya meneliti foto yang ditunjukkan. Saya lihat juga beberapa dokumen lain yang ditunjukkan sebagai bukti wang bertukar tangan antara pihak terbabit.

Ternyata segala bahan bukti yang berada di depan saya adalah lebih daripada apa yang mampu saya cerna. Agak sukar untuk saya mempercayai bahawa pelbagai pihak sanggup melakukan apa sahaja — termasuk menawarkan wang dan habuan seks — semata-mata untuk memastikan sebuah sekolah Tamil ditutup.

“Puan tidak mengemukakan segala bahan bukti ini kepada sesiapa?” saya bertanya dengan perasaan yang berbaur antara marah, sedih, kecewa dan hairan.

Parameswari memandang saya dengan mata yang tidak berkelip. Mungkin sedang mengenangkan pengalamannya menangani dan memperjuangkan isu ini sejak 1996.

“Terlalu ramai pihak yang terlibat. Masing-masing ada kepentingan dan cuba menutup kes. Termasuk beberapa pensyarah di kolej kamu yang kononnya pejuang Bahasa Tamil. Tetapi merekalah yang mengetuai gerakan memansuhkan SJKT di seluruh negara.”

Serta-merta saya berhenti menulis. Pensyarah di Kolej Siru Kambam turut terlibat?

“Siapa?”

Parameswari menunjukkan foto dua pensyarah yang amat saya kenali dan kagumi. – Bersambung 

* Uthaya Sankar SB menulis faksyen ini hasil perbualan bersama seorang pengkaji dan penyelidik yang berwibawa.

Source : http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/opinion/article/menjual-sjkt/

யூ.பி.எஸ்.ஆர் தேர்வு முடிவுகள்: 1045 தமிழ்ப்பள்ளி மாணவர்கள் 7A

  

கோலாலம்பூர், நவம்பர் 20- நேற்று 2012-ஆம் ஆண்டுக்கான யூ.பி.எஸ்.ஆர் தேர்வு முடிவுகள் வெளியாகின. இத்தேர்வில் மொத்தம் 1045 தமிழ்ப்பள்ளி மாணவர்கள் 7ஏக்கள் பெற்று சாதனை படைத்துள்ளனர். எனினும், கடந்த ஆண்டு 1218 மாணவர்கள் 7 ஏக்கள் பெற்றிருந்த வேளையில் இவ்வாண்டு இந்த எண்ணிக்கையில் சரிவு ஏற்பட்டுள்ளது.

மாநில ரீதியில், சிலாங்கூர் மாநிலம் தான் யூ.பி.எஸ்.ஆர் தேர்ச்சி விகிதத்தில் முதலிடம் வகிக்கிறது என்றாலும், கடந்தாண்டை விட இந்த எண்ணிக்கை குறைவு என்றே கூறலாம்.

மாநில ரீதியாக யூ.பி.எஸ்.ஆர் தேர்வில் 7ஏக்கள் பெற்ற மாணவர்களின் எண்ணிக்கை பின்வருமாறு:

சிலாங்கூர்: 2011 -351

                     :2012 -312

ஜொகூர் : 2011 -232

                   :2012 - 205

பேராக் :2011 - 209

              :2012 -152

நெகிரி செம்பிலான்: 2012 – 121

மலாக்கா: 2011 -59

                  : 2012 -23

பகாங் :2012- 40

பினாங்கு :2011-59

                  : 2012 -45

Source : Vanakkam Malaysia

Serendah Tamil School: Board members to go on fast unto death, if promise not fulfilled

The members of the board of management of SJKT Ladang Minyak Serendah (Lembaga Pengelola Sekolah) have reconfirmed today their decision to go on fast unto death starting from midnight tomorrow if the promise of RM5.5 million for the construction of a new Tamil school in Serendah is not fulfilled.

They said that the fast unto death is definitely on if the promise made by Prime Minister Najib Razak, DPM Mohyiddin Yassin and MIC President G. Palanivel is not fulfilled by November 20.

“We had already made public our decision to go on fast unto death on November 3 and had confirmed the same by our letters addressed to the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister, the MIC President and the other relevant departments”, said the chairman of the Board A. Rama Rao.

He added, “There has been no response from any of them till today.”

The new three storey school building should be up and ready for the new intake in 2014, but not even a blade of grass has been moved, he claimed.

The two acre land for the Tamil school was provided by UMW Holdings. The LPS is the registered owner of the land.

Rama Rao explained, “During the Hulu Selangor bye election campaign on April 24, 2010, the Prime Minister announced an allocation RM 1 million for the development of the school.

“At the ground breaking ceremony held at SJKT Ladang Minyak Serendah on June 7, 2012, the Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin promised the Board of Management RM2.5 million for the school.

“The MIC President G. Palanivel had as reported in Tamil Nesan and Malaysia Nanban on October 7, 2012 offered RM2 million for the School.

“So, it is RM5.5 million altogether. But nothing has come to the Board.”

The Board had already drawn up the building plan and the contractor for the construction appointed. “All preliminary work” had been completed and it is the money that the Board is waiting for, he added.

When pointed out that the deputy minister of education had on November 10 announced that tenders would be called on November 15 for the construction of the new building for the school, Rama Rao said, “November 15 is a public holiday. That shows how serious is the deputy minister on this matter. But we are serious. Our date for fast unto death is November, 21.

-SEMPARUTHI-

Tamil school in dire straits

GEORGE TOWN: Touted as being the best Tamil school in the state when it comes to UPSR results, SJK(T) Subramaniya Barathee has been falling apart for the past two decades.

“We just cope,” said the school's senior assistant, V. Sukuna Vathi.

There are 223 students and 20 teachers in the five-classroom school.

The premises, which include containers used as classrooms, a canteen with a leaky roof and a building that houses the staff room, are rundown and crammed.

In a sorry state: The condition of SJK(T) Subramaniya Barathee in Glugor has been deteriorating for the past 20 years.

Students cannot use the canteen when it rains and spend recess in their classrooms.

To make matters worse, the school was broken into on Sunday while teachers and students were at the City Stadium for their sports day.

Losses, including a television set, personal gadgets and petty cash belonging to the staff, were reported to be around RM2,000.

He added that he would speak to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak about improving the condition of Tamil schools nationwide.

MIC told to prove land claim - FMT

B Nantha Kumar

 | April 19, 2012

A member of the Effingham Tamil school board of governors says that a land search showed that six acres were originally allocated for a school.

PETALING JAYA: The board of governors of a Tamil school here has challenged the MIC to prove its claim that a three-acre land beside the school belonged to the Barisan Nasional aligned Indian-based political party.

VT Rajen, a member of the Effingham Tamil school board of governors, said MIC must show the evidence to back its claim or return the piece of land that was originally designated for the school.

“We want MIC to do the right thing by ensuring that the Effingham Tamil school gets back the three acres of prime land,” he told FMT.

The school is located in Bandar Utama, Damansara. Accusations of the land grab first surfaced in 2008 after former students and residents claimed that the developer of Bandar Utama has allocated six acres of land for the school in 1999.

MIC, however, countered this claim, saying that there was an error in the description of the proprietor in the land title and that the party is the rightful owner of the three acres.

However, Rajen dismissed this claim, saying that it was “unacceptable”.

Rajen also showed a copy of the Bandar Utama land plan which was drafted in 1996 by the Petaling Jaya land office.

According to the plan, there were two pieces of land – lots 28813 and 28814 – for a religious school and a primary school respectively.

“Each of the schools was awarded 24,293 square metres of land equivalent to six acres,” Rajen said.

However, he said a recent land search on the Tamil school lot revealed that the six acres had been broken into two separate lots in 2005.

“The MIC seized the Tamil school’s land after 2005,” he alleged.

“If it is true that the six acres were divided into two halves between 1990 and 1995, then it should have been recorded in the state executive council meeting. Can MIC reveal minutes of meetings as proof?” he asked.

“The land was designated for public use and should not be sold or transferred to any individual or political party, hence it was not suitable for the MIC to use it to build its headquarters there,” he added.

Serdang Tamil School: “Siapa akan tanggung kos bangunan ini? PIBG atau LPS?”

-Gopal Thirumalai/Vinod, 25.3.12

SRJK(T) Serdang is located less than 1km away from Universiti Putra Malaysia and a mere 10 minutes’ drive from Putrajaya.

The school was started in 1936 with one teacher and 40 students. The current enrolment is about 700 students and is one of the 132 fully aided schools from the total of 523 Tamil Primary schools nationwide.

As a parent of one of the students of the school and as one of the former students from the same school, I would like to highlight the plight of the students and parents of the school, which also reflects the state of other Tamil Schools in the country.

Although the school is fully aided, we literally have to beg with the Education Department for everything, including the maintenance and repairing of the infrastructures of the school.

At times, the PIBG will contribute some fund to do minor repairing works. The newspaper cutting above is from the year 1963, when the new building was officiated by the then Menteri Besar.

The building was declared unsafe by JKR in 2002. Despite several appeals, the JKR never lifted their fingers and always came up with the standard answer “Tiada peruntukkan tahun ini” (No budget allocation for this year). It was a disaster waiting to happen and it duly happened at around 8am on the 16th February 2012.

The ceiling in one of the classes collapsed suddenly while lesson was going on and luckily, the teacher managed to bring all the students out from the class before it collapsed further, bringing down huge amount of debris. By God’s grace, no one was injured but the real drama started only after that.

The school is located in the Sri Serdang state constituency, under BN ( Datuk Satim bin Diman) and under Serdang Parliamentary seat, under PR. Datuk Satim, who won the seat by less than 50 votes in the last election, did not even bother to respond or visit. Meanwhile, politicians from PR were barred from entering the school compounds, as per one circular from the Educational Department in the 1990s.

The school authorities contacted the respective departments and personnels. Datuk K Devamani immediately paid a visit, promised to build temporary cabins within two weeks for the students to study, with plans for another permanent building in future and bragged about the amount of money spent by BN in the past few years (in the region of few hundred millions at least) for Tamil Schools as well as some unrelated stuffs like ETP and etc.

Some of my friends cheekily said that this a normal “Wayang Kulit” show as he has no power to do anything. I realised it now that they were just telling the plain truth.

It is almost 3 weeks already and our children still don’t have classroom to use. Lessons are conducted at canteen and some empty space between buildings. The children are suffering due to hot weather and cannot concentrate on their studies. A lady officer from JKR visited the school recently and said that JKR is willing to build the new building but asked a funny question, “Siapa akan tanggung kos bangunan ini? PIBG atau LPS?” (Who is going to bear the cost? PTA or The School Board?

Can someone tell this lady that this school is a fully aided school and it is the responsibility of the present government to provide the basic infrastructures? By right, we should sue the department for failing provide a safe building.
Some even suggested that we should approach the state government, but I disagree. As far as I know, I have been paying taxes since 1993 to the Central Government under BN, just like all Malaysians so why the hell should I go around and begging people?

Isn’t it BN’s duty to provide basic infrastructures as we pay tax to it? And don’t tell me that you don’t have enough money. 1% of the loan given to Sharizat’s family is enough to build a 3 storey building here. Imagine that this is happening to a fully aided school! How about partially aided schools? Don’t you collect taxes from them too?

Why are you discriminating us, BN? The PM wants us to put `nambikkai’ (trust) on BN and I don’t have to give a better example on why we shouldn’t trust the BN government!

Tamil school aid: Whither the millions? - FMT

B Nantha Kumar | March 21, 2012

The government has promised millions to upgrade Tamil schools, but one pertinent question remains.

KUALA LUMPUR: The government has promised millions of ringgit to upgrade Tamil schools in the country but one question still remains.

Would the millions really be spent on the reconstruction of these schools or would it go to crony contractors; or be channeled back to the government?

The lack of transparency in releasing the funds had raised heckles from non-governmental organisations, who wanted a system to streamline funds to ensure it reached the “target” group fast.

Commenting on this, Malaysian Consumer Advisory Association (MCAA) president G Varatharajoo said apart from the Public Works Department (JKR), the Education Ministry and MIC were also to be blamed for the “improper” administration of the RM100 million set aside as special allocation for Tamil schools under the 2012 Budget announced by Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, who is also finance minister, last year.

He said the Finance Ministry had yet to release the money to the affected Tamil schools because the Education Ministry was in the final stages of approving over 230 Tamil schools identified to receive the aid.

FMT learnt that all qualified Tamil schools were divided into three categories — relocation, additional building and upgrading of existing infrastructures.

According to documents furnished to FMT, about RM40 million had been allocated to 16 schools under the relocation plan, 20 schools stood to get RM38.3 million for additional buildings while another 173 schools would receive RM18 million for infrastructure upgrade.

Varatharajoo said although the Malaysian Indian community welcomed the government’s assistance with open arms, it was concerned over the delay in disbursing these funds and the estimated cost quoted by the JKR.

“The estimated cost set by the JKR is really absurd… for example JKR has fixed RM1.5 million for an additional building with six classrooms. This means each classroom costs around RM250,000 which is really too much,” he said.

“When we checked with a few private contractors, we found that a classroom will only cost between RM70,000 and RM75,000. So it is clear that the JKR quoted prices that have been ‘jacked-up’ three fold than the actual cost,” he added.

He said going by these estimates, in actual fact the government would only complete work amounting to RM33 million out of the RM100 million set aside under the 2012 Budget.

“This is because the relevant authorities especially JKR has quoted three-fold prices. While work will be done for RM35 million, the remainder of the allocation will either go back to the government or into the pockets of contractors or cronies given the contracts,” he added.

Set up board of governors
Negeri Sembilan Tamil School Board of Governors (LPS) coordinator R Sathiaseelan felt that the government should channel funds to a particular school’s board of governors instead of allowing JKR to deal directly with appointed contractors.

“LPS is the best way to channel the money. The board consists of representatives from the Education Ministry, the schools’ parent-teachers association, former students, the public and the headmaster or headmistress. They will know how to spend the money wisely,” he added.

He said efforts were underway to form a board of governors in all Tamil schools as they could act as the conduit between the government and the school.

“As the Negeri Sembilan coordinator, I visited all the Tamil schools in the state and received good response from parents and the public on this suggestion,” he added.

He also lashed out at MIC, touted to be the largest Indian based political party in the country, as it did not favour the setting-up of the board of governors in Tamil schools nationwide.

“With the LPS set-up, MIC feels it would lose its grip on Tamil schools as the government would be dealing directly with the LPS and not through MIC,” he added.

He said the Education Act stated that a school’s LPS would be the authority when it came to matters relating to the infrastructure of a school.

There was also a need Najib to clarify his claim recently that RM440million had been spent on Tamil schools from 2008 to 2012.

The prime minister must reveal details of how the money was spent and which school benefited from the huge allocation.