By Teresa Kok

Although 460 teachers have completed the 18 months full time DPLI – SR ( Diploma Perguruan Lepasan Ijazah – Sekolah Rendah ) programme on May 23 this year, they have yet to be assigned any teaching post in the national type Chinese primary schools ( SJK C- sekolah rendah jenis kebangsaan  Cina) .

This is baffling because while these qualified teachers remain jobless, SJKC continues to face the problem of lack of qualified teachers. How could the Education Ministry allow such a situation to occur and prolong till today?

Some of these teachers have complained to DAP that they had stopped teaching as untrained temporary teachers (GSTT –Guru Sandaran Tidak Ter latih) in SJKC and taken up the programme in the hope to become qualified teachers, only to face an uncertain future after graduation.

Many are now facing financial burden. Yet their complaint includes the sad fact that they have not even been called for interview by the Suruhanjaya Perkhidmatan Pelajaran. As the DPLI – SR programme is one of the formulae implemented to address the problem of teacher shortage in SJKC, there is no reason for such delay in posting the teachers given the fact that the shortage exists in these schools.

It was reported last week that the deputy education minister Datuk Mary Yap has remarked that these teachers should go and find jobs and not just wait to be posted. She was quoted to have also said that in their contract with the authority, there is no obligation for the government to find jobs for them.

Yap has made very unfair remarks which are akin to rubbing salt in the wounds. She has failed to understand that these teachers do not choose to wait at home or to be jobless. These teachers have signed a two year service contract with the Ministry and how does Yap expect any private school to employ them?

If the Education Ministry continues to prolong the teachers’ plight, I shall bring up the issue in the Parliament meeting scheduled to begin on September 23.