The Member of Parliament (MP) for Puchong, Yeo Bee Yin has urged the Federal Government to review the process of appointing contractors for the building and maintenance of Sekolah Kebangsaan or national schools.
MP for Puchong, Yeo Bee Yin
This is following the revelation that the current average cost of building just one classroom in national schools is between RM1.8 to RM2.6 million!
Speaking in Parliament last Tuesday (28 March 2023), Yeo said that many MPs have and will urge the government to increase the allocation for maintenance and the building of national schools. However, she stressed that there is a pressing need for spending efficiency to be reviewed as well.
Based on data from the Ministry of Education (MOE), the costs of building a few new national schools are as below:
- Sekolah Kebangsaan Setia Alam 2 (34 classrooms) – RM54 million
- Sekolah Kebangsaan Paya Dusun, Terengganu (24 classrooms) – RM55 million
- Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Dudong, Sibu, Sarawak (42 classrooms) – RM110 million
As we’ve alluded to earlier, this makes the average cost of building just one classroom between RM1.8 million to RM2.6 million. Yeo asserted,
“To put this into perspective, the cost of building one classroom is the same as the price of a luxury condo or a semi-D in the city or even a big bungalow in rural areas.
“This is a very low spending efficiency. Is the modus operandi for school maintenance the same?”
Kos SATU bilik darjah sama seperti SATU bungalow?! #parlimen pic.twitter.com/5beHVv2HCn
— Yeo Bee Yin (@yeobeeyin) April 5, 2023
The Puchong MP further elaborated that this is not a political issue because the problem remains the same regardless of who is the government. Hence, Yeo calls for bi-partisan support so that the relevant ministries can urgently tackle this issue.
So, what do you guys think of the statement by the Puchong MP? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!
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