SCHOOL student Thor Jun Yee, 13, has a good reason to smile when he was successfully enrolled at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Simpang Empat near Nibong Tebal today.
Batu Kawan MP Kasthuriraani Patto said that Jun Ye could now continue his education as a Form One student at the government school.
“Previously, he was denied the right to resume his education at the secondary school (a government school) due to his non-citizen status.
“This was also because of the new ruling that came into effect this year, which requires all children who are non-citizens to get a passport from their respective countries.
“Jun Yee’s father, Thor Siong Tat, is a Malaysian citizen and mother, a Chinese national, but due to some documentation problems, the boy was deemed as ‘stateless’ and not a Malaysian citizen although he was born in Malaysia.
“Fortunately, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the father was allowed to register his son at SMK Simpang Empat.
“And I would like to thank the school management for their professionalism in assisting Thor and his son on how to go about the registration and so on,” Kasthuriraani told reporters during a press conference at the school today.
Kasthuriraani also urged the Education Ministry to allow non-citizen children, including the adopted ones, to be enrolled in government schools.
“Previously, under the Pakatan Harapan (PH) administration, a zero-reject policy was introduced that allowed non-citizen children, including the adopted ones, to be enrolled in government schools, as long as they could provide the relevant documents and a court order. Thus, I hope the current government will follow that policy.
“I will also write an official letter, highlighting this matter, to the Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, Education Ministry and Home Ministry.
“Hopefully all of this will be solved quickly as I believe there are others like Jun Yee, who must have encountered a similar situation.
“Therefore, I urge parents, whose kids share the similar plight as Jun Yee, to step forward and come to our service centre to be assisted. Rest assured, we will do everything we can to help,” she added.
Story by Riadz Akmal
Pix by Noor Siti Nabilah Noorazis