tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4628235739908723591.post7924040872273871629..comments2023-08-16T16:39:08.997+08:00Comments on VOON LEE SHAN: FORMULAE ON LANDS PREMIUMS – A POLITICAL GIMMICK?VOON LEE SHANhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04591212783831724001noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4628235739908723591.post-78468667834632810252008-01-30T14:04:00.000+08:002008-01-30T14:04:00.000+08:00KUCHING: By Nancy Nais : One of the few remaining ...KUCHING: By Nancy Nais : One of the few remaining mission schools in Sarawak, St Martin primary school in Samarahan, was forced to close indefinitely as it was evicted out of the land on which the school stood in a land dispute.<BR/><BR/>Its 313 pupils and teachers have been given an early year-end holiday, a week earlier than scheduled.<BR/>The last classes for the 45 year-old school in the largely Iban village of Merdang Gayam, about 35km from here, were Wednesday ( Nov.7).<BR/><BR/>Pupils continuing their primary education at the start of the new term in the new year would do so in a number of schools in the area.<BR/>But the majority of them would be placed at SK Barangan about 4km away. Some of them spent their last day in school playing cricket.<BR/><BR/>The first sign of trouble for the school administrators came in April this year when the landowner Millah Kitat, 71, through her legal counsel Voon Lee Shan issued a letter giving them an ultimatum: Buy the whole parcel of land including that on which the school stands or move out within a week.<BR/><BR/>The whole parcel of land Millah owned, titled Native Customary Rights (NCR) land, covers about 12ha. The school stood on 5ha.<BR/>When the school failed to move out within the deadline set, Voon, who is also the DAP state assemblyman for Batu Lintang, served another legal letter demanding compensation claiming the school had trespassed on Millah's land.<BR/><BR/>The letter stated that Millah had demanded a RM700,000 compensation to be paid within a week as cost to cover damages.<BR/>To avoid further legal complications, the state Education Department ordered the school shut.<BR/><BR/>"The root of the problem was that the previous land owner who had alienated the land for the (Anglican) mission to build the school there had not legalised it," state Education director Dr Julaihi Bujang said of the eviction.<BR/><BR/>In 1962, Lian Teetat Emparu, described as a staunch Christian who had the welfare of villagers there at heart set aside 5ha of his 12 ha land there to the Anglican Christian mission to build a school.<BR/><BR/>"In those days, there were a number of attap schools run by Anglican missionaries in that area of Samarahan," the parish priest Rev Nelson Sinken said.<BR/><BR/>"It was then decided that there should be one good school where all these pupils from these attap schools could be relocated," Rev Sinken, who is also chairman of the school's board of management, added.<BR/><BR/>He said Emparu came to the church's assistance by volunteering to alienate part of his land to the mission for the building of the school.<BR/>"He even drew up an agreement for that," Rev Sinken said as he showed the document retrieved from the parish archieve.<BR/><BR/>The "agreement" stated how the 5ha land should be used.<BR/><BR/>It also stated that the land would be "free of charge or encumbrances" and that his "heir or heirs would not develop that portion of the land alienated for the school".<BR/><BR/>But since that "agreement" was not legalised, it became of point of contention with Millah, Emparu's daughter who inherited the land when he died.<BR/><BR/>But the school's fate was doomed when the school's board of management in an 11 to 1 decision decided not to act to save the school.<BR/>The dissenting decision was that of Rev Sinken who argued the mission should have some say over the management of the school.The other board members however are of the opinion the school should be altogether surrendered to the government in order to secure more funds for the school.<BR/><BR/>In line with that decision, the board decided not to act to save the school but left it to state Education Department to do so, Sinken said.<BR/>"Since the mission was not interested in saving the school, we followed likewise," Julaihi said.<BR/><BR/>"Moreover, the landowner and her legal counsel did not give us much time to negotiate.<BR/><BR/>"For example, there is no way we can come up with that RM700,000 they demanded in seven days.<BR/><BR/>"They are not giving us much options."<BR/><BR/>Julaihi said his recommendation to the Education Ministry was to shut down the school but at the same time look for a piece of land where the ministry could buy to build a new school.<BR/><BR/>Last Tuesday, the school summoned all parents to the school to inform them of the shut down decision and the relocation of their children to other schools.<BR/><BR/>The head of the school's Parents-Teachers Association Agun Bujang described the meeting as tense and filled with anger.<BR/>"There was much anger as expected," Agun said.<BR/><BR/>"Not only do they (parents) have to adjust their daily routine next year. The cost of sending their children to school would spiral upwards.<BR/><BR/>"Those who start work early would have to send their children to school early. That could be as early as 6am. "And they would have to make at least four trips daily to send their children to school. "Now what if they could not fetch them back from school because of work commitment?<BR/><BR/>"You can't expect them to walk 4km home can you?" Agun asked.<BR/><BR/>"They are very angry but there is little they could do."<BR/><BR/>These parents are resigned to the arrangements made by the Education Department until another school is built in the area.<BR/><BR/>Ends….freedomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03043563275776759538noreply@blogger.com