Zairil and the unmasking of 1BestariNet

 

THE 1BestariNet project, which aims to propel the education system into the IT-dom, is looking more and more like a white elephant, not unlike some of the past projects such as e-learning and smart schools of the Education Ministry, said Bukit Bendera MP Zairil Khir Johari.

 

And Zairil pinned it down to the fact that the project was awarded to YTL Communications, a company which provides telco services but not an expert on the virtual learning environment (VLE).

 

The price quoted on the Chromebooks – the laptops that will be given to every child – supplied by YTL also indicated that the company is reaping profit as the mere middleman, as these could be bought much cheaper off the shelves in the market, according to Zairil.

 

He noted that YTL has also not denied that it will ride on the telco towers built in schools to offer its commercial services to the local communities.

 

"It was given in an open tender but how open it was is the question. There is a big question mark – was it an invited tender?

 

"There is much to be questioned on the merits and tender process and why YTL is getting the 1BestariNet which comes with VLE and Chromebooks.

 

"Chromebooks quoted at RM1,200 (by YTL) appear to be much cheaper if we buy them off the shelves," he said, adding that the company is neither the manufacturer nor an appointed distributor.

 

The 1BestariNet is to provide the 10,000 schools nationwide the boost into the digital age with Chromebooks for every child and Internet connectivity for every school, to create a VLE.

 

The project will cost the Malaysian taxpayer RM1.5 billion at least, and would span over 13 years.

 

"Why not just buy the Chromebooks from Samsung or Acer? We can get them for far lesser than at the price that we would be paying to YTL. In fact, we can get it less than the retail price," said Zairil.

 

Zairil opines that giving the whole 1BestariNet project solely to YTL Communications raised many questions and that breaking the project into smaller parcels and awarding them to a number of companies might be better.

 

"Why YTL and not Telekom, which already has an existing network all over Malaysia?" questioned Zairil.