Dicing with death on the way to school

Deputy Chief Minister Joseph Pairin Kitingan has come under fire over the poor condition of a school and facilities for students in his constituency.

KENINGAU: Students in Sabah’s interior region are dicing with death on an almost daily basis in a bid to secure a basic education.

About 20 pupils from Kampung Pulungan, Sepulut and Nabawan, near here, have to wade through fast-flowing Balaron River in order to reach Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Lotong, their primary school.

The reason is simply because the government failed to rebuild a hanging bridge which collapsed in 2000.

Village spokesman, Sanreco Ansusuok, 37, said the situation was causing endless worry to the parents, especially during heavy rains when the water level in the river rises.

“We have reported the problem to the authorities but to date no action has been taken to remedy the situation.

“Very often when the river overflows, we have to help the children cross the river because we are worried of their safety, ” Ansusuok said, adding that on days when the rain is relentless, the children are held back from going to school.

He said there were times when the children missed going to school for up to three days in a week because of the heavy rain and high water level in the river.

“This has caused a lot of disruption to their schooling,” he added.

No repairs despite complaints

Meanwhile, State Reform Party (STAR) Sabah has taken Keningau MP Joseph Pairin Kitingan to task over conditions in schools in the area.

“What is he doing about education in his constituency? Is he even informing the Education Ministry about the shameful condition of schools in Keningau?” asked the party’s state deputy chairman Dr Nicholas Guntohon.

He said Pairin as a Deputy Chief Minister should be able to resolve ‘simple problems’ such as building a bridge across the river for the students and repairing the drainage system in the schools.

Guntobon was referring to SK Pekan Keningau, which is constantly flooded after a downpour.

“I don’t understand why such simple problems like building hanging bridges and repairing a school’s drainage system are so difficult to do when billions are spent elsewhere on mega projects like the unbelievable RM450-million bridge to Bum Bum Island,” he said.

He said SK Pekan Keningau, which is a wooden structure, is in bad shape with leaking roofs despite requests for repairs being sent to the education authorities.”

He added that school was “right under the nose of Pairin” but has not received any assistance.

“This has been going on for so long. Now that Pairin has announced he will be re-contesting the Keningau seat, he should take a walk around Keningau and try to solve the people’s problems before he asks for their votes again,” Guntobon said.