Teo blasts shortage of devices for online learning, questions if Johor govt will deliver soon

 

Former deputy education minister Teo Nie Ching has lambasted the slow distribution of electronic devices to help in home-based learning (PdPR) in Johor.

The Kulai MP, in a statement today, asked the Johor government if the 8,000 devices it promised to distribute are going the same way as the 150,000 laptops the federal government was supposed to hand out.

“The 150,000 laptops promised by the federal government have disappeared, where are the 8,000 devices promised by the Johor state government?

"One year after the PdPR was implemented, there are still students who are unable to follow online classes due to a lack of suitable devices," she said.

She recounted that over the weekend, she had received a request from a distressed mother.

"Her family has lost income and her eight-year-old son has not been following online lessons for three months due to a faulty device.

"As a mother, a child’s learning is the most important thing to me. As such, I handed a new tab to her the next day," said Teo.

She added that since the PdPR was first implemented, she had donated 65 tabs or computers to B40 families.

"But, the more important issue here is, where are the 150,000 laptops that were promised by the finance minister last November? Why is the delivery of 150,000 laptops still incomplete?

"Not only that, where are the 8,000 devices promised by the Johor state government on June 10 in the Ihsan Johor 3.0 Economic Stimulus Package (PRE)?

"One month after the announcement was made, how many devices were handed over and to whom?" added Teo.

She called for accountability and transparency in the matter, saying that the slow and inefficient handover of laptops by the federal government has long been criticised by the public and that she hoped the Johor government would not repeat this mistake. - Mkini