KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 6 — A RM12.97 million new science stream religious school in Kelantan has failed its original aim by not enrolling Form 4 science stream students when it first opened its doors in 2017, a federal audit report has found.
In the audit of the Sekolah Maahad Sains Tok Guru (SMSTG) that Yayasan Islam Kelantan’s board had agreed to build in April 2012, the Auditor-General (A-G) noted that the new school was planned to prepare 10 classes each for Form 4 and Form 5 with a total capacity of 600 students for a religious school that is dedicated to the science stream and with boarding provided.
“The objective of the construction of SMSTG is to further develop the religious school education system in Kelantan that offers full science stream studies for students who graduated from PMR in order to cope with an increase in the public’s demands for such studies,” said the A-G Report 2017 Series 1 that was tabled in Parliament today.
The A-G report noted that the initial stage was planned with 24 teachers and nine non-teaching staff based on the 300-student capacity for Form 4, but said high salary costs resulted in the school taking in 107 Form 1 students instead for the 2017 school year.
“However, the Audit’s inspection found that the intake of students for Form 4 in the science stream for PMR graduates as planned was not carried out.
“This happened as YIK was unable to cope with the high expenses for the emolument of the teachers and workers totalling RM1.61 million compared to taking in Form 1 students that is only RM0.74 million based on a study of the implementation of studies in SMSTG that was carried out in 2016,” the report said.
Citing the Examination Unit’s survey on YIK students that took the PT3 (which replaced the PMR examination) in 2016, the A-G report also found that only 28 out of 231 YIK students were interested to continue their science stream studies in SMSTC.
“This shows in-depth study from the aspect of finances and students that would be enrolled were not done by YIK when preparing the proposal papers for SMSTG’s construction,” the report said.
As a result of the changes, the A-G report found that 45 out of 63 facilities that were prepared for the use of 300 Form 4 students were not used, namely including 12 lecture rooms, 21 hostel rooms and two science labs.
But in a feedback from YIK on February 27, 2018, the A-G was told: “The policy of taking in students for the science stream remains and the existing facilities will be fully used gradually within a five (5) year period after the intake of the first-year students.”
The A-G report concluded that inefficient planning of the project caused the prepared facilities to not be fully utilised.
The SMSTG, which was built with funds of RM0.97 million from YIK and the remaining RM12 million from loans on 5.26 hectares of land in Pengkalan Chepa in Kelantan, had an initial contracted construction period of November 4, 2013 to April 12, 2015. It had a delayed completion date of September 15, 2016.
Among other things, the A-G report noted that construction work began on SMSTG in November 2013 even before approval was granted for the development and its building plans, and that the school started using the building on January 2, 2017 even before the Certificate of Completion and Compliance (CCC) was issued.
The A-G report said full approval of the building plan was only obtained on February 22, 2018, but that the CCC had yet to be issued as of end February.
In its February 27 feedback, YIK told the A-G that the decision to start occupying the school building without a CCC was due to several reasons, including the project consultant having in September 2016 certified that the school building complex had been completed, and also handed over the building and key then.
“The school session had to start in 2017 since the student intake session in 2016 was delayed as the building had not been completed by the contractor. If the student intake in 2017 could not be done, cost wastage will happen as the building facilities are not used when they have been ready on September 15, 2016,” said YIK, among other things.
But the A-G report said the consultant’s negligence in obtaining prior approval before construction could have resulted in risks to building safety, especially when fire breaks out.
The A-G report also noted “improper payment” as RM144,991 or 56.1 per cent of RM258,421 worth of works was paid out to the contractors despite the work not being done, and that an additional RM83,805 was paid out even when the items or works ordered were not supplied, while yet another RM283,563 was paid out for works that were not carried out according to specifications.
