Najib ‘most caring PM ever’ — Ongkili
KOTA MARUDU: A quantum leap in allocation for huge development projects in Sabah shows Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has a soft heart for east Malaysians.
“He (Najib) is the most caring prime minister ever,” said the member of parliament here, Datuk Seri Dr Maximus Ongkili, yesterday.
The Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister said the increased allocation for basic infrastructures such as roads, water, health, rural homes and especially education was evidence to the nation’s Number One leader’s sincerity in narrowing the development gap between East and West Malaysia.
“Our school children continue to enjoy assistance like free uniforms and shoes, even education aid like KWAMP (Kumpulan Wang Amanah Pelajar Miskin), the RM100 cash aid for students and Siswa 1Malaysia, to mention some, are meant to ease parents’ burden on the additional expenses at the start of the new school term,” he said.
Ongkili said this after distributing RM100 education aid to 697 pupils in three schools here, namely Sekolah Kebangsaan Tigaman, Sekolah Kebangsaan Mangaris and Sekolah Kebangsaan Tagaroh, on Thursday.
He noted that while parents here have the luxury to various education aid, their counterparts in other developing countries are forced to pay almost the full education costs.
In addition, he said Najib had announced an unprecedented allocation of RM1 billion this year for developing and upgrading schools in Sabah and Sarawak.
“Under the first phase of the programme, 107 rural schools have been selected and about half a billion has been allocated to either repair or rebuild dilapidated schools, construction of new classrooms, as well as upgrading sewerage system, among others,” he said.
He meanwhile urged parents and teachers to work closely together with the schools to ensure the school children are properly guided to pursue and strive for excellence in their educational pursuits.
“Parents, teachers, civil servants and other professions are here where we are now because we had good grounding in recognising the importance of education.
“These education aid had somehow created positive vibes on the children and the improving examination results are evidence to its effectiveness.
“Remember, the sky’s the limit when it comes to succeeding in education,” said Ongkili.
On top of that, other development projects including the mega Pan Borneo Highway, are currently on-going to bridge the gap between Sabah, Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia.
“This is a reflection of the Prime Minister’s sincerity and full commitment to make sure the development in both Sabah and Sarawak would catch up with the peninsula.
“Unlike former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad who was more focussed in arresting and sending (us) to jail under the then Internal Security Act (ISA) for being vocal against the mistreatment in respect to Sabah and Sarawak.
“He hardly did anything to stamp out the flooding of illegal immigrants to Sabah, which has now become our biggest problem,” he said.