Financial aid given out to nine independent Chinese schools in Perak

IPOH: Nine independent Chinese (Suwa) schools in Perak have received a total allocation of RM1.8mil from the state government.

Mentri Besar Datuk Saarani Mohamad said the allocation was given to help the schools manage their finances.

“This is a one-off allocation whereby each school will receive a total of RM200,000. This is part of the RM8.1mil budget allocated to schools in the state.

“The allocation is expected to benefit about 10,000 teachers and students,” he said during a press conference held via Zoom on Wednesday (Aug 18).

The schools that received the allocations are SM Shen Jai, SM Yuk Choy and SM Poi Lam in Ipoh; SM Nan Hwa in Ayer Tawar; SM Yik Chin in Pantai Remis; SM Pei Yuan in Kampar; SM Tsung Wah in Kuala Kangsar; SM San Min in Teluk Intan; and SMJK Hua Lian in Taiping.

Saarani said the allocation is part of the Perak government’s efforts to help private schools in the state.

“This is our long-term commitment to lessen the burden on the schools. We also approved land tax remittances and land tax arrears at the normal rate of RM10 per lot every year.

“For nearly two years, schools have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. We hope these allocations would also help to pay for education programmes for the sake of the teachers and students,” he added.