THE lack of local teachers working in the state is a concern, says Tellian assemblyman Royston Valentine.
He said based on Mukah District Education Office information, the new teacher enrollment data from 2021 showed that 85 per cent was from Peninsular Malaysia and only 15 per cent from Sarawak.
“And the number of local teachers who will retire each year are more than the percentage of new teachers recruited among local Sarawakians and it is very worrying because we want the number of teachers from Sarawak to always be sufficient.”
He said this in his debate speech for the Supply Bill (2023) 2022 during the fourth day of the 19th Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting on Thursday (Nov 24).
Royston said that he was made to understand that there were still many local children in Sarawak who have Education degrees but yet to be placed in any school.
“Therefore, I hope that the relevant ministry will give priority to local children on this matter.
“I also request for the ministry to get related data on this matter so that we can refine and help the future teachers of Sarawak’s children through the upcoming 2023 budget expenditure.”
Meanwhile, Royston suggested that UiTM Mukah and Mukah Polytechnic upgrade the programmes at the institutions to a degree level to accommodate the number of diploma students who are eligible to continue their studies while empowering higher education especially in the central region.
