KOTA KINABALU – As online learning continues after the mid-term break, a Sabah rep has again questioned the distribution of the 150,000 laptops promised by Putrajaya as parents here have not seen them.
Kapayan assemblyman Jannie Lasimbang said Budget 2021 included the provision of laptops to 500 schools and underprivileged students but many Sabah parents have not seen any of them.
“Did Sabah receive any of these computers? If not, why is Sabah left out again? The government should immediately address this delay as online learning and teaching resumed yesterday and will go on until July 17.
“Schools are closed and classes are now conducted online due to the lockdown, but not all students can afford devices and data.
“It is not acceptable for the laptop distribution to be delayed when funds have been allocated,” the Sabah Wanita DAP head said in a statement.
She added that 429 students from SK St Anthony here have applied for the laptops but are still waiting for them.
On June 6, Education Minister Datuk Mohd Radzi Md Jidin said 12,887 units had been given out to 95 schools nationwide, with 40,290 units to be distributed by June 12.
“The remaining 96,823 units, God willing, will be distributed by the end of September.”
Yayasan Hasanah, which is tasked to distribute the laptops, on April 25 said more than 1,000 students had received their devices.
Some 13,000 devices had been distributed by government-linked companies and government-linked investment companies to various state departments, it said in a statement. – The Vibes, June 14, 2021.
