Delay in naming board led to issues, says deputy minister

MUAR: The delay in appointing the new Skills Development Fund Corporation (PTPK) board of directors has led to the issues that are currently affecting students and private Technical and Vocational Education and Train-ing (TVET) institutes, says Deputy Human Resources Minister Datuk Mustapha Sakmud.

“The delay has led to some issues especially with the appointment of new, and renewal of training supervisors, and approval of new programmes and study fees,” he said.

To mitigate the issue, the ministry appointed the chairman and deputy for the board on Sept 26, and a meeting has been scheduled for Oct 11, he said.

On the allowances – RM2,500 for laptop and RM2,000 for transport – he said these were given in the past to attract students to take up TVET courses.

“We are now reviewing the two allowances due to the surge in demand, especially in the third quarter,” he said.

This surge was due to the government’s emphasis on improving TVET to help make the country a high-income nation, he added.

“The computer allowance will only be given to those who need to use it for online classes and those enrolled in ICT or in level 4 and level 5 programmes.”

The transport allowance will also be reviewed and would take into account the location of students, especially those in rural areas in Sabah and Sarawak, he added.