Parents advised to be more mindful of children’s safety

KUCHING: Deputy Works Minister Datuk Yong Khoon Seng on Thursday night advised parents to be more mindful of their children’s safety while enjoying holiday outings.

He believed many parents would bring their children for outings during the more than one-month long school holiday, which would end beginning of January next year.

“It is wonderful that parents bring their children for a relaxing holiday during the school break but they should be extra cautious of any possible risk,” he said during a farewell dinner for the board of management of SK Garland at a restaurant here.

Yong, who is Stampin member of parliament, pointed out that parents should avoid what he described as high risk places such as seaside, rivers and other activities requiring certain skills.

Citing an example, he said if parents were to take their children to the sea, they must make sure that safety measures were in place to avoid any untoward incident.

He said it was important to ensure school holidays would not turn into sour memories.

Touching on SK Garland, he noted that the school had been doing quite well in the public examination – Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) – over the years.

“Thanks to the dedication of the teachers and the headmaster, and despite the limited resources, pupils managed to achieve good results,” said Yong, who is the incoming chairman of the school board of management. It is learnt that Yong had been granting government funds amounting to RM20,000 a year between 2005 and 2007.

SK Garland headmaster Raymond Wood and outgoing chairman of the board of management Edmund Stanley Jugol also spoke during the function.