KUCHING: Sarawak students studying in the peninsula and Sabah are hoping the Sarawak government will also offer flight ticket subsidies like what is being done by Sabah.
It was reported that a one-off subsidy of RM600 for flight tickets will be given by the Sabah government to Sabahan students studying in Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak and Labuan.
Sarawak Tribune talked to some Sarawak students to get their opinion on the matter.
Nur Syafiqah Syazwani Morni, 23, Student from Universiti Malaysia Pahang
It is a good initiative by the Sabah government and I think the Sarawak government should also provide similar subsidies for Sarawak students studying in the peninsula and Sabah.
Before this the Sarawak government had introduced the Sarawak Returning Graduate Initiative (i-GPS) for students returning to Sarawak, but I think it is important for the Sarawak government to expand the subsidy initiative to make it more comprehensive and equitable to all Sarawak students, regardless of their destination of study.
Beatrice Linang, 24, Student of Unitar International University
I think we should encourage the Sarawak government to give similar subsidy to Sarawak students who are studying in Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah. As we all know the flight tickets are far more expensive for Sarawakians and Sabahans, and if there’s a similar subsidy done by the Sarawak government it would help a lot in reducing students’ financial burden.
Erna Alyiana Winston, 24, Student of Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM)
I think the subsidy is a must for Sarawak students who are studying far away from the state. There are a lot of students from Sarawak who are furthering their studies in Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah and subsidies provided by the Sarawak government will help the students in terms of transportation costs.
Bazilah Najaa Albaz, 23, Student of Management and Science University (MSU), Shah Alam
The initiative from the Sabah government is indeed very reasonable and from what I know, the Sarawak government had a similar subsidy in collaboration with Sarawak Volunteer. I think it is a good initiative that needs to be publicised.
Kathriana Lenya Joseph, 22, Student of University Utara Malaysia
A lot of students are still not aware of the subsidy the Sarawak government had been providing to Sarawak students through the Sarawak Returning Graduate Initiative (i-GPS). This initiative can only be claimed when the students are returning to Sarawak. I think it would be better if the initiative could also be extended for them to fly back to their university.
Judd Maran John Adu, 22, Student of Universiti Utara Malaysia
Although there is the Sarawak Returning Graduate Initiative (i-GPS), ticket prices are higher that the allocation given. I think the government should study the ticket price.
