Rahman Dahlan: Why is Sabah buying 10k laptops when fed govt is giving more?

 

A Sabah Umno leader has questioned the Sabah state government's move to buy 10,000 laptops for Sabah students at the cost of RM15 million.

Umno Supreme Council member Abdul Rahman Dahlan said the decision was made even though the federal government agreed to supply 150,000 devices - which included laptops - for B40 students.

“The Sabah state government has announced the decision to buy 10,000 computers for students in Sabah. Its distribution will start from July 19, 2021 until Oct 18, 2021.

“The intention is good and needs to be supported.

“Oddly, however, we all know that the federal government has promised to supply 150,000 computers to students all over Malaysia,” he wrote in a Facebook post today.

Up until June 6, the Education Ministry had distributed nearly 13,000 devices including laptops to schoolchildren from the B40 group thus far, according to its minister Mohd Radzi Md Jidin.

Radzi said the handover of the remainder of the 150,000 laptops will be completed by the end of September 2021.

“As many as 12,887 units have been distributed to 95 schools... whereas another 40,290 more will be distributed on June 12.

“The remaining distribution of 96,823 units is expected to be completed by the end of September 2021,” he said during an online press conference.

Rahman said the Sabah government should wait for the devices to be distributed by the government, and suggested that the allocation should be channelled to help small businesses within the state instead.

“The remaining 96,823 computers will be distributed in September 2021. It’s not like the Sabah state government can’t wait for a month, seeing that the computers from the federal government will be distributed in September.

“The question is, what is the need for the state government to purchase 10,000 computers at the cost of RM15 million when the federal government is already supplying 150,000 to students nationwide, including in Sabah?

“It would be good if the RM15 million could be spent to help small businesses and rural folk who suffered during this ‘lockdown’,” he added. - Mkini