Why our bright brothers and sisters are ignored and are out of the main stream of education? Isn't eduaction is the minimal for all and should be cheap ?
But look at what our brothers and sisters are still need to be taken care by the foreign aids.
Where is our wealth and resources ? In whose bank account ?
Again sorry for my brothers and sisters in the story . This is just the tips of the iceberge.
Young hopefuls
By NASA MARIA ENTABAN
nasa@thestar.com.my
SITI Dirwana Diming’s dream is to be a teacher. There has always been a shortage of teachers in her rural school, and she wants to teach the children in her community some day.
There are however obstacles to Siti, 20, achieving her dream.
Her father has passed away, and her mother is barely able to support their family of 10 on her meagre salary as a housekeeper.
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The Honda and UNDP crew (left) listening intently as a student tells her story. Under the Honda Dreams Fund, 20 deserving youths will be awarded scholarships to study the course of their choice at any university in Malaysia. This year, 10 places have been allocated for indigenous peoples in Malaysia. |
“As the eldest in the family, I help out during the holidays by working part-time at the travel lodge,” says the Orang Sungai native, who hails from a village in Kinabatangan.
Siti sat for the STPM examinations last year, and hopes to further her studies. She is, however, frustrated because her applications for scholarships have been unsuccessful. Without financial aid, Siti knows that she would not be able to go to college.
Under the circumstances, Siti struggles to keep her spirits up.
“Sometimes I wonder if I even deserve an education, if the opportunity should be wasted on me, but I am determined to prove that someone with my background can succeed.”
Siti does not smile much, but the passion in her voice grows as she talks about her dreams.
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Walter Minsos wants to help improve the conditions of his village by becoming a politician. |
”I want to set a good example for my siblings and people like me. I want to come back and teach in my own village, because I understand that urban people will not want to come here,” says Siti.
Dreams are a thing of luxury, and opportunities are scarce here, as in many rural places in Sabah and Sarawak. Indigenous groups in Sabah and Sarawak are among the poorest in the country, with the lowest income and income growth compared to non-natives.
For these rural communities, putting food on the table is paramount, and opportunities for tertiary education are scarce. Most youths begin working after they finish secondary school.
Thus, the 60-odd villagers of Kampung Sukau and nearby villages who have gathered in the multi-purpose hall of this riverside village were interested in a private company’s offer of financial aid for students.
Honda Malaysia Sdn Bhd’s five-year community project, the Honda Dreams Fund, is in its second year and this time around, 10 places have been allocated for indigenous peoples in Malaysia.
The programme gives non-binding scholarships to deserving youths between the ages of 17 and 24, to study the course of their choice, in any university in Malaysia. Nationwide, 20 young people will benefit from a RM1mil fund pool, created to aid deserving students who can’t afford to further their studies.
Honda is working with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to reach out to youths in rural places who have little or no access to current news and information.
In Siti’s village, they sometimes get the newspapers three days late. Internet access is a rarity in the more rural areas.
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Sendeh Lobius has 10 siblings and worries about not being able to achieve her ambition of becoming a teacher. |
Applications for the Honda scholarship usually include the submission of a 500-word essay. Honda and UNDP have, however, ventured to the ground; to not only spread word about the scholarship, but to seek applications in the form of video recordings.
The team hopes that using video recordings would help youngsters who are not so adept at expressing themselves in writing.
Queuing up to tell their stories, the youths take deep breaths as they take their seats in front of the camera, proceeding to talk about their family background and their dreams.
Siti’s isn’t the only moving story – most of the people in her 1,000-odd population village have similar accounts of struggling to make ends meet.
According to Malaysia: Measuring and Monitoring Poverty and Inequality (UNDP and the Economic Planning Unit), the poverty line in Sabah is RM704 – households with incomes below the poverty line are considered poor. (Poverty is estimated at 58% for the Rungus community, 41% for Orang Sungai, and 35% for Murut and Sulu communities).
In two of the districts visited by the crew – Tambunan and Kinabatangan – people work mostly as farmers. The crew also went to the Penampang district.
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Siti Dirwana Diming dreams of becoming a teacher. However, opportunities for youths in rural areas of Sabah are few and far between. |
However, most youths only make it to Form Three before dropping out to work and earn a living. Only a handful make it to university, but the young ones have come to realise that education is their only way out.
Walter Minsos, 19, wants to get a degree and then become a politician to help his community.
“A lot of villages in Tambunan don’t have electricity, and the unpaved roads cause cars to suffer damages, which cost money to repair,” says the outspoken and confident boy from a village in Tambunan.
Walter realises that he must first learn about the ways of the world before he can help his fellow villagers.
The second child out of 10, Walter has an older brother who is a mechanic; his parents are farmers.
“I want to learn about the world. There are so many changes to be done in this town, but I know that I have to make something of myself first before trying to improve things here.”
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Jenny Bolunsin may be shy but she is determined to improve her life. She wants to be a professional beautician. |
Many of the youngsters share Walter’s sense of social responsibility.
Sendeh Lobius of Kampung Piasau, two hours away from Kota Kinabalu, has the greatest admiration for her geography teacher, Agnes Edward Ujin, who studied in Universiti Malaya and came back to teach.
“My older siblings are working as shopkeepers. They didn’t want to study because they don’t think it’s important. I want to get an education; it’s the only way out of poverty,” says the pretty, bright-eyed girl, who is in Upper Six. Sendeh has had to hold on to her belief in education amidst challenging circumstances; she has no tuition class and insufficient schoolbooks, and classes are cancelled when the weather is bad. Still, she scored seven credits in her SPM.
The 19-year-old Kadazandusun girl has never ventured out into the big cities, but she is sure her place is in her village.
“I would not want to live anywhere else. I want to get my education, come back here, and help out in my hometown. If I don’t get this chance, the best I can manage is become a shopkeeper.”
After the closing date for applications, the organisers of the Honda Dreams Fund will select 60 youths to attend a leadership workshop in Kuala Lumpur, where they will shortlist 30 candidates for a final interview to decide which 20 youths are the most deserving.
A panel of representatives from the Human Rights Commission (Suhakam), All Women’s Action Socitey (AWAM) and Malaysian Youth Council (MYC) will select the final 20. Hope lights up Jenny Bolunsin’s eyes as she listens to the talk on the Honda Dreams Fund.
The 18-year-old girl is shy, but there is no mistaking her resolve to improve her lot.
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With the help of the Honda crew and UNDP, applicants for the Honda scholarship who are not adept at expressing themselves in writing got the chance to tell their stories on video. |
“Beauty is everything these days. I have wanted to work in this line since I was a child, but only if I can get proper training and call myself a professional,” says the farmer’s daughter.
As she leaves the library hall after the video recording, she shrugs her shoulders and turns to look towards her mountain home.
“People like us don’t feel like we belong in university, because very few of us have made it that far,” says Jenny, pausing for a moment before adding,
“But I would never pass up the chance to make my family’s life easier. And education is the only way to a better life.”
To find out more about the scholarship, go to www.honda.com.my, and for information on UNDP, go to www.undp.org.my.
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