Each of the 116 students affected by the hostel fire in Kulim will receive RM500 in immediate assistance, with RM200,000 sought for temporary shelter.
PETALING JAYA: Each of the 116 students affected by the fire that destroyed the hostel at Sekolah Menengah Agama (SMA) Tarbiah Diniah in Kulim will receive RM500 in immediate financial assistance, while an emergency allocation of RM200,000 has been requested to construct a temporary building for the displaced students.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution said some of the students lost all their belongings in the blaze and were left with only the clothes they were wearing.
“Some of the students I spoke to told me they escaped with only the clothes on their backs and lost everything in the fire.
“We hope this assistance will help ease their burden in replacing their school necessities,” he told reporters during a visit to the school today.
Saifuddin said he had briefed Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on the incident and sought his approval for the emergency allocation to provide temporary accommodation while plans for a new hostel are being finalised.
“With the Prime Minister’s approval, following my briefing earlier today on the incident, I have requested an immediate allocation of RM200,000 to construct a temporary building while arrangements are made for a new hostel,” he said.
He said the temporary building would enable the affected students to resume their studies and help address accommodation issues while investigations into the cause of the fire continue.
The minister said the incident, which occurred two days ago, affected 116 hostel students, comprising mainly those in Forms Two, Three, Four and Six, with only one student from Form Five.
Saifuddin also announced that his office would provide RM10,000 in immediate financial assistance to the school’s Parent-Teacher Association (PIBG).
Meanwhile, students whose identification documents were destroyed in the fire will be able to obtain replacement MyKad free of charge through the National Registration Department’s (JPN) mobile service van under the Mekar Programme.
“The students do not need to go to the JPN office. The mobile van will come to the school, and the replacement process can be completed within 15 to 20 minutes. I will request that the replacements be issued free of charge,” he said.
Saifuddin said the government would utilise available emergency funds to ease the burden on the affected students, particularly in replacing school supplies and other learning essentials.
For now, some of the affected students have been granted leave to return home while the school reorganises its hostel arrangements and determines the available accommodation.
Yesterday, the media reported that a fire broke out at the boys’ hostel of SMA Tarbiah Diniah in Kulim at about 3am on Monday, affecting more than 100 students.
All the students escaped safely, but the fire destroyed a significant portion of the hostel. The cause of the fire and the extent of the losses are still under investigation.
