Tag: Education

‘Allah’ Usage Issue, Politicians Don’t ‘Fish In Murky Waters’

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SHAH ALAM, 29 December: Dialogues among religions in this country should be nourished to avoid misunderstandings between religions until it is being politicised.

These dialogues are necessary when religious sensitive issues become political issues to attack political opponents for the sake of respective political interests.

For Lecturer Dr Maszlee Malik, from the Faculty of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), actually this issue is only a symptom of bigger problems such as ignorance of the believers of one religion about another religion in this country.

From this mutual ignorance, mutual misconceptions emerge that become fertile space for prejudice, slander and misunderstanding.

Therefore, he reminded politicians to enhance integrity, morality and ethics respectively so as to not ‘fish in murky waters’ due to their ignorance together with the people of this country.

According to him, common misunderstandings can be avoided or minimised if the Ministry of Education creates a subject about the religions in Malaysia as a core subject which is compulsory for all students.

“Public and Private Institutes of Higher Learning also must have the subject as one of their core subjects.

“Similarly for Islamic studies, it should be attended Similarly, the subject of Islam, should be attended by all as Islam is the official religion in the country to be known by all our citizens,” he said.

Dr Maszlee also told every citizen in this country to appreciate community pluralism in this country.

“It is the responsibility of every Malaysian citizen to mutually appreciate society pluralism of Malaysians and it must be addressed as a strength rather than a factor of conflict,” said Dr Maszlee in a media statement.

Previously, the issue of the word ‘Allah’ by Christians in Sabah and Sarawak became heated up and faced a stalemate when some politicians deliberately made the issue a weapon to attach their political opponents..

Their actions eventually added to the mess of the situation so as to trigger tension between Muslims and Christians in the country.

PETSOHO-S Helps Boost Single Mothers Income

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SELAYANG, 28 Dec: Single mothers who participate in the Selangor entrepreneurial programme (PET SOHO-S) are confident that it can provide them with skills to earn their family’s income through home-based businesses.

PETSOHO-S or Selangor Single Mothers Economic Empowerment Program which was introduced in August has been providing entrepreneurial training through a mentor-mentee approach to provide guidance on an ongoing basis over three to sis months.

Participants of the programme will be able to generate a monthly income of about RM1,500.

For single mother, Norzimah Mohd Nor, 51, this programme is able to improve her quality and standard of life through the training programmes offered.

She who is currently able to provide for six of her children by selling nasi lemak expressed gratitude for being selected as one of the participants of the programme.

“I am very grateful for this assistance given by the State Government. I chose to participate in this programme because I want to improve my quality of life and altogether increase my family’s income.

“I hope that through this programme, single mothers will be more eager to be independent and to generate income through businesses,” she said when met at a PETSOHO-S workshop here at Batu Caves last night.

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PET SOHO-S provides all the infrastructure needed for single mothers to start a business.

Single mothers who are selected will be guided by their respective mentors for a period of time before they start their own businesses.

Among the list of products offered include photography, Taska@home, Sajian2U.com, Spa and Salon, Online Supermarkets, Tailoring, Foot Reflexology, Halal Food Manufacturing and Professional Household Management.

Welfare, Science, Technology and Innovation Executive Councillor Roziah Ismail said that the State Government targets the involvement of 200 single mothers for the programme at the onset.

“Through this programme, we will provide guidance to single mothers through training, courses, allowance and equipment to start a business.

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“This programme also enables single mothers to receive incomes of at least RM1,500 by only working from home,” she said.

Another participant Asiah Kamaruddin, 50, said that PETSOHO-S is able to equip single mothers with the knowledge and skills to become successful entrepreneurs.

She has seven children and only supports her family through a small-scaled business and has suffered hardships for a long time.

“Alhamdullilah, I am touched to have been chosen as a participant in this programme. Programmes like this really reflects the State Government’s compassion in helping the people, especially those from the lower income group,” she said.

Do Not Flip-Flop, Prioritise Local Ability in Teaching English

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SHAH ALAM, 27 Dec: The Federal Government should prioritise employing local graduates and to improve the country’s education system, before proceeding to hire teachers from outside the country to teach English.

Education, Higher Education and Human Capital Development Executive Councillor, Dr Halimah Ali said that the poor command of the English language in schools may be due to the learning system itself.

At the same time, there are thousands of graduates from educational institutions that have yet to get jobs despite achieving good results.

The Federal Government has flip-flopped in their decision regarding English language education.

This can be seen in policies on the study of science and mathematics in English which was implemented during the administration of former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed, and was later cancelled during the administration of Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Therefore, said Dr Halimah, the Ministry of Education should review the implementation before making an announcement.

“Just because we visited India, it does not mean that we have to immediately be interested in bringing over people from India to teach at our schools.

“It has to be reviewed.We do not want the phenomena of flip-flopping policies, one minute it is there, another it is not,” she said when met.

She added that the action also seems to treat students in this country as an experiment.

Last week, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak during his visit to India, announced that Malaysia is keen in hiring teachers from that country to teach English in Malaysia’s national schools.

PKR Strategy Director Rafizi Ramli recently raised the issue of the fate of graduates with Bachelor of Education (ISMP) degrees particularly from Private Institutes of Higher Learning, who have yet to receive job offers in national schools.

In March 2012, Deputy Minister of Education Datuk Paud Zarkashi confirmed that 7,000 ISMP graduates have yet to receive job offers despite their good results.

Dr Halimah said the Federal Government should solve the unemployment problem of education graduated so that they are not ‘discriminated’ against.

“We have a lot of education graduates, it cannot be that the Federal Government does not have confidence in hiring them? While the Ministry of Education is the one producing these graduates.

“To teach a certain language, they have to have correct teaching and learning methods.

“An effective method should be used. From what we see in terms of theory, students are smart, however in terms of speech, they are not fluent in communicating.

“It may not be a wise step and mistreat our own graduates,” she said.

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The People’s Hope for 2013: Additional Assistance Programmes, Solve Infrastructure Problems

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SHAH ALAM, 26 Dec: The people of Selangor are satisfied and have benefited from programmes offered throughout 2012 by the State Government such as school assistance (Back to School), TAWAS Selangorku Bonus and Free Water Scheme.

In addition, it is hoped that assistance for lower groups will increase and be continued next year, they also hope that Selangor will improve and provide infrastructural facilities under its control.

For example Nasaruddin Mohd Yusof has not paid a single water bill since the State Government introduced the 20 cubic metre free water scheme four years ago.

“Hopes for 2013 are that PR remains administering Selangor and would win at Putrajaya so as to focus programmes to care for the plight of low-income, private sector workers like me,” said the 39 year old security officer.

He also hopes that the State Government will increase more religious schools and will be more stringent in combating gambling machine activities throughout Selangor.

Apart from benefiting from the free water scheme, Sembagavalli Kaniapan, 35, also benefited from the ‘Back to School’ programme which was created by the State Government.

“‘The ‘Back to School’ programme helped lessen by burdens by a lot, especially with the increase in price of goods, and with this savings, I am able to finance my other needs,” said Sembagavalli.

Several senior citizens from Sembagavalli are also participants in the ‘Jom Shopping’ and ‘Case of Deaths’ programmes under the Golden Age Friendly Scheme (SMUE).

Sembagavalli hopes that the State Government will intensify efforts to help low-income earners in 2013.

Hamidah Salam from Batu Tiga, Shah Alam, also hopes that the State Government will endeavour projects to overcome flood problems that often happens in her residential area.

“Hopefully, in 2013, the State Government will able to provide assistance to flood victims and promptly overcome the flooding problem in Kebun Bunga,” she said, who is also a recipient of school assistance programmes from the State Government this year.

In addition, Hashim Bulat said that he hopes that the State Government will increase information programmes explaining state policies so that more people will know and apply for assistance.

“The State Government has already established various programmes to ensure that people from all walks of life in Selangor benefit from the State Government’s revenue,” he said.

Selangor Chief Minister’s Christmas Day Message

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Malaysians are famous for multiple celebrations. Its trait as a plural society has made Malaysia among the unique countries in the world in terms of culture and beliefs of its citizens. And Christmas is one of the compositions of that faith.

If we observe the positive spirit infused in this celebration, Christmas brings the symbol of friendship and unity of the various races in this country. In fact, the culture of visiting each other and helping each other has become a tradition in our society and has been embedded as a compulsory agenda in the process of appreciation across religions and cultures.

Not only that, the festival highlighted with a public holiday has brought tremendous joy to most people. Although it is not celebrated on the factor of different beliefs, the holiday has certainly become an indirect platform for solidarity between Christians and non-Christians in this country.

Which is why Selangor has always made harmonious relationships between races and the well-being of the religious community a strong peg that must be followed by every state government agenda.

Every progress and improvement of the people’s quality of life has been lit till its roots so that implementation of positive values instilled in every belief and religion remains preserved.

It is not surprising that under the current government administration, apart from providing assistance to the development of Islam, we are also providing special provisions to help the management of worship places such as Christian churches, Buddhist and Hindu temples as well as other religions.

This matter is important so that every citizen in the state of Selangor will obtain fair and impartial assistance. This mechanism has been used throughout our given mandate. Hopefully, this will continue to be accepted by the people and will continue to be trusted by the people, especially in Selangor.

Therefore, as a representative of the Selangor State Government, I am pleased to wish everyone Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to the Christian citizens of Selangor.

Thank you.

TAN SRI DATO ‘ABDUL KHALID BIN IBRAHIM
Chief Minister of Selangor

New Parking Lots for Sri Tanjung Apartments

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SUBANG JAYA, 24 Dec: For 11 years, shortage of parking spaces and narrow streets at Sri Tanjung Apartments at SS 16, have not only been the residents complaints but it also threatens their security.

In November, the Chairman of the Sri Tanjung Apartment Residents Association Mohd Nizam Abdullah said that there was a fire at one of the apartment units.

Because residents have been forced to double-park their cars, fire engines were not able to enter their area.

“However, we are thankful as there were no casualties resulting from the incident,” he explained this morning at the press conference here.

Finally, under the policy of attentiveness, the Selangor Government has contributed more than RM253,000 to build a new parking area for the apartment.

That amount is 80 percent of the total cost of RM317,000 for the facility.

In addition to the State Government’s contribution, funds have also been obtained from the Management Committee apart from RM5,000 which was received through personal contributions from Senior Executive Councillor, Teresa Kok, who is also the Kinrara Assemblywoman.

Previously, the apartments only provided 650 parking lots although it has a thousand residential units and 28 commercial units.

Now, a new parking area will be built on the site of a children’s playground and is estimated to accommodate 216 cars and 450 motorcycles at a time.

“We will have to move the playground and split the into two due to lack of space.

“Of course, the problem cannot be fully resolved, however we are relived that at least parking congestion can be reduced,” he added.

Also present at the press conference were Senior State Government Executive Councillor Teresa Kok, Puchong MP, Gobind Singh, Subang Jaya SS16 Senior Police Officer Azman Md Zain and MPSJ Council Member, Cheah Sang Soon.

Teresa who is also the Kinrara Assemblywoman took the opportunity to donate school bags to 30 children from Seri Tanjung Apartments.

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Tunas Targets 5,000 to Receive Kindergarten Assistance Next Year

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SEPANG, 24 Dec: Application conditions for the Selangor Kindergarten Assistance Scheme (Tunas) will be relaxed to expand the scheme participation to 5,000 recipients next year.

Education, Higher Education and Human Capital Development Executive Councillor, Dr Halimah Ali said that previously, application for the assistance was open to every family with a household income of less than RM1,500 per month.

However, the Selangor Government is considering to change the conditions for families earning RM2,500 and below.

“The conditions are currently being discussed at the Excutive Council meeting and I hope it is being well thought out,” she said after officiating the Sepang District Tunas Tour Mini Carnival Programme.

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Also present were the Sungai Perak State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Coordinator, P. Sivakumar and State Tunas Operations Officer, Abdul Mutalib Islan.

She said that the target of 5,000 recipients and participation from 500 kindergartens that register for the scheme is in accordance with the new provisions for next year, which is RM3 million.

“If this year we allocated a total of RM1.016 million, then next year, the Selangor Government will be allocating RM3 million under the 2013 Budget.

“Therefore, I hope for cooperation from various parties including Assemblymen, DUN Coordinators, Village Heads and all parties in order to help ensure the success of this scheme,” she said.

The Tunas Scheme under the Merakyatkan Ekonomi Selangor (MES or Localising the Selangor Economy) agenda
gives kindergarten children who qualify an assistance of RM50 per month.

Implementation of this scheme began on July 1 this year where fees for children who were selected were paid directly to kindergartens registered with the Majlis Permuafakatan Tadika Selangor (MPTS or Selangor Kindergarten Council).

So far, a total of 1,903 beneficiaries have benefited with the participation of 232 registered kindergartens under MPTS including Pasti, Kemas, JAIS Pre-School, Ministry Pre-School, Unity Kindergarten and Private Kindergartens.

Meanwhile, Abdul Mutalib said that the Sabak Bernam district recorded the most number of entries for the Tunas scheme followed by the Klang district.

“To ensure that the programme runs smoothly and is made known to the public, we will visit 56 districts and hold a roadshow to brief (the people) about the assistance as well as to hold a Tunas Family Day,” he said.

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For trader, Mohd Azhar Mahmud, 38, the assistance will help ease his burdens.

“I am happy with this assistance, although little, it at least helps traders like me,” he said.

Another recipient, Aznita Nor Othman, 28, from Bandar Baru Salak Tinggi hopes that the assistance will continue to help low-income families.

“This proves the State Government’s concern, for example I have three children, I am not working and I depend on my husband who is only a factory worker,” she said.

It Is True That A University Student, KPT Do Not Be Biased

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SHAH ALAM, 17 Dec: Despite the fact that a university student will be competing in the upcoming elections being true, the Ministry of Higher Education (KPT) is being reminded to be fair to all university students.

According to university student activists, Adam Adli, this is because there have been many previous occasions that KPT has been unfair to students involved in supporting the opposition party.

According to Adam, he personally does not have any problems with several students joining and becoming club members of any political party supporters.

“For me, what is happening now is that KPT does not understand the purpose and the actual claims of students which is to freely allow undergraduate students to engage in politics.

“Today, what we see is that when participating in groups that mostly support the opposition (Pakatan Rakyat), they are often discriminated against and this is an offence to those in those parties.

“However, if they are in groups that support the current government, this is an advantage for them,” he said when contacted by TV Selangor.

Last week, Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin, announced that the government will be allowing university students to compete in the GE-13 as a recognition to the function and contribution of the current maturity of university student’s mentality in this country.

According to Khaled, this is also in line with the government’s move to amend the Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA) recently that allows students to be active in political parties and activities off-campus without and restrictions.

Previously, the rise of university students saw several students expressing their voices through demonstrations to pressure the government to give attention to university students who want to be active in politics including the amendment of the UUCA.

526 Students Who Achieved 5As in UPSR Receive Kota Anggerik DUN Excellence Award

SHAH ALAM, 16 Dec: A total of 526 students from Kota Anggerik who achieved excellent results in the 2012 Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) or Primary School Assessment Examination, received awards as a recognition of their achievement.

The students who obtained 5As are students from 11 schools from the Kota Anggerik constituency.

The gifts included certificates of appreciation, school bags and a cash prize which were presented by the area’s Assemblyman, Dr Yaakob Sapari at the main stage of the 2012 Agro Fest site which was held here at the Shah Alam Stadium car park.

In addition to congratulating the students involved, Dr Yaacob also advised parents to emphasise creed apart from academic education.

“For me, it’s true that academic education is important however, if it is not accompanied by creed, it will yield imperfect results.

“My Hindu friend also agrees, morality is very important,” said Yaakob who is also the Agricultural Modernisation, Natural Resource Management and Entrepreneur Development Exco.

Meanwhile, student of SK Bukit Jelutong, Dania Betrisyia Farid who recently achieved 5As in the recent UPSR said that the award has inspired her to repeat her outstanding achievements.

“Thank Allah for the 5A result and after being appreciated like this, I am now more eager to maintain this outstanding performance in the Lower Secondary Assessment (PMR) and Malaysian Certificate of Education (SPM),” said Dania.

Nur Erisya Adleena Noor Azwan from the same school, said that she was pleased that her outstanding achievements is appreciated by the Office of Anggerik’s Assemblyman.

“I was a little nervous when I went up the stage to meet the Assemblyman, however I am very happy because he appreciates my achievement in obtaining 5As in the UPSR,” said Erisya.

Over RM600 Million Spent on the People of Selangor’s Welfare

KUALA SELANGOR, 15 Dec: The Selangor Governement has already spent RM600 million for welfare programmes under the ‘Localising the Selangor Economy’ also known as ‘Merakyatkan Ekonomi Selangor’ (MES) agenda.

These programmes include aid in the case of deaths and the Jom Shopping Golden Age Friendly Scheme (SMUE – Skim Mesra Usia Emas) and the Selangor Children Heritage Fund (TAWAS).

Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim said that although the Selangor Government has allocated a huge amount for the programmes, however the Selangor Government Cash Reserves has now increased to RM2 billion.

“So this means that although the Selangor Government is spending a lot, it still has savings because we know where the money is spent.

“Of all the money spent by the Selangor Government, the people can see its transparency.

“That way the people will come together in its development. Now, the people can say that it is ‘our money’,” said Abdul Khalid.

He said that Selangor government has an effective record system for seniors compared to the previous government. This system will ease the channelling of assistance.

He said this during the SMUE Assistance Presentation Ceremony at the compound of Ijok State Assembly Service Office.

Abdul Khalid and his wife, Puan Sri Salbiah Tunut together delivered the SMUE to 47 recipients for the Second Phase of the Ijok area worth RM1,000.

Also present was the President of the Kuala Selangor District Council (MDKS), Noraini Roslan and the newly appointed Kuala Selangor District Officer, Mohamad Yasid Bidin.

Yasid also previously served on the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).

Meanwhile SMUE benefits recipient, Mohd Sahar Sadri, 43, said the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) led Selangor Government’s efforts should be emulated by other states.

“This SMUE programme is good and I would like to thank the Selangor Government under the leadership of Pakatan Rakyat that is running this scheme because it can also lessen the burden of beneficiaries,” he said.

Selangor Shines in Kafa Examination

SHAH ALAM, 14 Dec: Selangor achieved 100 percent of students who passed their 2012 Kafa Class Writing Examination (UPKK) thus altogether emerging as the best state with 1.55 points, followed by Malacca and Terengganu.

Education, Higher Education, and Human Capital Development Exco, Dr Halimah Ali said that overall, the Kuala Selangor district emerged as the best district with a National Average Grade (GPN) of 1.36.

This was followed by Sepang with a GPN of 1.46 and the Hulu Selangor district with a GPN of 1.48.

She said that a total of 15,933 students took the test whicht began last October.

From the amount, a total of 8,624 candidates managed to obtain an A ranking as compared to 6,617 candidates in 2011.

For the achievement of an aggregate of 8As, 2,613 candidates obtained it as compared to 1,185 in 2011 where the district with the highest percentage of candidates obtaining 8As was Kuala Selangor at 34.05 percent followed by Kuala Langat, 23.23 percent and Klang with a percentage of 22.54.

By subject, Amali Solat and Appreciating Muslim Lifestyle recorded the highest pass rate of 100 percent and 98.98 percent for Al Qur’an.

Halimah added that the increase in student achievement in the exam proves the effectiveness of educational programmes conducted by the State Government over the years.

Clearly, the state government under the administration of Pakatan Rakyat has always had the view that the Islamic education system in Selangor is able to produce students who excel in any field.

She said that besides the mission of making Selangor an educational hub, it is hoped that the Islamic education system in Selangor would be the best example.

“This success is expected to continue into the next year and the State Government will be planning other initiatives for education in the Selangor.

“The main core of the State Government is to drive individual modernisation,” she said when contacted.

For the record, thirteen states have recorded hundred percent passes in the 2012 UPKK examinations compared to 12 states last year.

The Federal Territory only achieved 99 percent passes.

In total, 24,962 candidates achieved 8As compared to 17,684 in 2011. Terengganu managed to obtain the highest amount of 8As which is 21.69 percent followed by Malacca at 21.50 percent and 18.34 percent for Sabah.

Japanese Students Join MPSP Tree Planting Programme

CYBERJAYA, 14 Dec: A total of 120 students from Nagasaki Nichidai High School, Japan, joined the tree planting program organised by the Sepang Municipal Council (MPSP) at Taman Hutan Bandar last week.

It was the third time the group from the school attended the tree planting event while appreciating the trees that have been planted before.

“For two consecutive years, in 2010 and 2011, they have come to plant trees and we have put up their pledge.

“This healthy program has evidently become an annual programme for us (MPSP) and the school (Nagasaki Nichidai High School) because we have the same beliefs.

“Which is that a lot of green trees are good for addressing climate change, especially in Cyberjaya,” explained the Assistant Director of the MPSP City Planning Department, Mohd Adham Mahmood at the programme on 8 December.

The tree planting programme was launched on 8 November 2009 by MPSP Council Member, Lau Weng Chan, who also officiated the programme that morning.

To date, nearly 2,000 trees have been planted here with an area of ​​9.67 acres next to Limkokwing University.

Apart from the Japanese students, the programme also gained support from local community as well as corporate companies such as Prima Properties Management Sdn Bhd, Limkokwing University and the Selangor State Development Corporation (PKNS).

“Hopefully, with the participation of the students from Japan, the private sector and the community here, the aim of increasing awareness and the importance of greenery can be increased among the community,” Adham said.