G25 backs committee to probe tahfiz fire, offers 'expertise'

It is in the public's interest to ensure the founders and principals of private religious schools are made accountable for any failures to provide safety for children under their charge, said G25 today.

In a statement, the group of eminent Malays said religious authorities should not resist an open inquiry into the manner in which such schools are run, but instead support the setting up of the special committee proposed by Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to look into yesterday's tahfiz school fire. 

The fire incident at the Darul Quran Ittifaqiyah tahfiz school on Jalan Keramat Hujung, Kuala Lumpur, killed 23 people.

Following the incident, Zahid said he would personally lead a special committee to probe the early morning fire which broke out at the school, which killed 21 students and two wardens, and injured 11 others.

"This is normal practice in democratic and civil societies and reflects a caring and responsible nation. Malaysia should not exempt religious schools from the principles of common justice or hide the underlying problems of religious education from public scrutiny, as this will only lead to similar tragedies recurring in the future.

"All private religious schools should be subjected to minimum standards for boarding institutions, including a proper teacher to student ratio and adherence to fire safety standards," the statement read.

Citing records that state there have been over 200 fire incidents in tahfiz schools nationwide in the past two years, G25 said with a problem of such magnitude, the schools should be immediately subjected to fire and safety inspections before another tragedy occurs.

G25, which consists of retired senior judges, civil servants, and diplomats, also volunteered to have its members in the committee, as they are "willing to sacrifice their time to assist in finding out how and why the tragedy happened" so that lessons can be learned from the tragedy.

PKR supreme council member Latheefa Koya echoed the sentiment, calling for ciminal investigations into those whose negligence led to tragedy. 

It was established that the tahfiz had no permission to run the school from the building, which did not have a fire safety permit and occupation certificate.

Latheefa added that "checks have confirmed" that the tahfiz school was not registered with the Education Ministry. 

She also urged the Islamic Development Department (Jakim) to focus on "taking steps to ensure precious lives of innocent children are safeguarded."

Those who perished in the tragedy were trapped in one of the rooms in the upper floor of the building, as the only way in or out was on fire, and the windows were equipped with non-hinged grilles, making it impossible to be opened from the inside.

Authorities have also ruled out a short circuit as the cause of the fire, and suspect there could be mischief involved. -Mkini