The Malaysian Insider – July 24th 2013
RCI praises Tawau’s “Mother Teresa” and school for stateless children
BY LEE SHI-IAN
July 24, 2013
A native of Tawau set up a school for stateless children in Kampung Nelayan Likas in 2005 after noticing that they were unable to attend classes in government-funded institutions, the Royal Commission of Inquiry on illegal immigrants in Sabah heard today.
Yahya Yacob, 61, went to Britain in 1986 where he worked as a community development director until 1999.
He then returned to Malaysia permanently and in 2005 he noticed dozens of children playing in the streets as he was sending his domestic help back to her home in Kampung Nelayan Likas in Kampung Likas.
“I asked my domestic helper why these children were running around playing in the streets instead of going to school. She told me that they could not attend classes because they did not have identification documents,” Yahya told the five-man panel.
He then met with the villagers and the headman to discuss educating the stateless children and found them receptive to the idea. They decided to convert a dilapidated community hall into a makeshift school with two classrooms and a toilet.
“In March 2005, the school was ready and 30 students enrolled for classes. I hired teachers who had worked in The Philippines although their qualifications were not recognised here,” Yahya told the panel, led by former Sabah and Sarawak Chief Justice Tan Sri Steve Shim Lip Kiong.
“These people have an absolute right to education, if we don’t help them, then we have failed ourselves. This issue must be taken out of the political area as many Malaysians are lost in the current political antagonism and the stateless people are trampled in between.”
Yahya, the 193rd witness called by the RCI panel, said the students at the school were aged between 5 and 16, adding that the enrolment changed every year because to the parents often moved to other villages.
He reiterated that it was the basic human right of a child to have an education regardless of whether the child was a Malaysian or not.
“I saw the school as an opportunity to help these children learn survival skills and how to live in this world. They are taught English, Bahasa Malaysia, Civics, Mathematics, Islamic Studies and History using textbooks from the Malaysian education curriculum,” he said.
Yahya said he occasionally gave classes in conversational English to help the children, especially those aged 16 who are about to leave the school and find jobs, on how to attend job interviews and impress their future employers.
Asked about Kampung Nelayan Likas, Yahya said it was a squatter colony with a small minority of permanent residents but said he was not sure of the status of the rest.
He said there was a policy of don’t ask and don’t tell.
“There were children who possessed identity cards but I noticed that there was an overpowering fear of authorities more than anything else. They have heard and read media reports about how illegal immigrants were apparently the root cause of all ills in Sabah.”
“It is not easy to get through to these squatters and it took me a fairly long time before I was accepted. There were at least 2,000 people living in Kampung Nelayan Likas before it was demolished by the Kota Kinabalu City Hall between 2007 and 2008,” Yahya said.
When the squatter colony was being demolished, Yahya said he practically had to beg the KK City Hall to leave his school untouched although it was not legal, nor was it registered with the Education Department.
In 2012, Yahya sought the assistance of the Sabah Islamic Affairs Welfare Department and managed to get a two-year licence to operate the school under the name of Madrasah Al-Hikmah, or School of Wisdom.
He said the land on which the school was located belonged to the KK City Hall and that he had been given tacit approval to continue operating the school.
However, if and when the KK City Hall wants the land back, it could demolish the school immediately.
“Yes, it is true, the school is living on borrowed time but in the meantime, it is flourishing. A total of 584 students enrolled for classes with the school this year and many more had to be turned away because of insufficient space,” Yahya said.
He explained that there were currently five fulltime teachers and three volunteers who conducted sports activities. He praised the teachers for their passion in teaching the children although they were not officially recognised as teachers by the government.
Yahya said his biggest worry was what would happen to their children once they had completed their studies at the school.
“It is very important that these stateless children are able to converse in Bahasa Malaysia and English, so that they will be able to make their way in life. There is currently no process for these stateless children to be accommodated or assimilated in our society.”
“That is the biggest danger as they will feel that they are the underclass in our society without any place. The Malaysian public must understand that these illegal immigrants are here to stay, so let us all try to make them productive and help contribute to the country,” Yahya said.
“These stateless immigrants and their children could pose numerous social problems to the country if they are not given proper assistance. If they don’t feel like they belong in our society, they might rebel and break the law.”
Yahya said as he was once a migrant in the United Kingdom, he can relate to these stateless people because they will always be the ones who are blamed for every social ill. But he also pointed out that the United States was built on an immigrant population.
Shim praised Yahya for his noble deeds and intentions, saying others should follow in his footsteps and do their bit for these stateless people. He congratulated Yahya for using education as a means of turning these stateless people into a useful and productive group.
Commission member Tan Sri Herman J. Luping said Yahya reminded him of Mother Teresa as what he had achieved since 2005 was no mean feat as he had done something good for the people and the community. – July 24, 2013.