KUCHING: The relevant state department and agencies are in the process of expropriating a land lot along Jalan Puncak Borneo for the construction of a new secondary school.
Puncak Borneo Member of Parliament, Datuk Willie Mongin, revealed that the site has been identified, and efforts are now underway to acquire part of Block 174 at Pangkalan 4, Padawan.
He said the land, located behind the existing Braang Bayur Clinic and approximately 20 kilometres from Kuching, measures about 25 acres.
They are in the midst of acquiring or expropriating this land.
After acquiring it, they will carry out all the necessary works, he told the Sarawak Tribune.
For now, I don’t know how far it has progressed or when it will begin. All I can say is the project has been approved,” he said.
Willie said he had requested updates on the project from the Ministry of Education (MOE) during the most recent parliamentary sitting.
According to a reply from the MOE, approval for land acquisition to construct the new school – SMK Puncak Borneo – was granted through the central agency under the Third Rolling Plan 2023 of the 12th Malaysia Plan (2021–2025).
He said the Sarawak Education Department, in collaboration with relevant agencies, is actively engaged in the land expropriation process.
Once the process and the conversion of land ownership status are complete, the MOE – through the State Education Department – will submit an application to begin construction.
He added that the notice to acquire the land has already been issued.
Willie said the application to build a new school in Puncak Borneo was initially submitted to the MOE in 2019 by the Padawan Education District Office’s school development unit.
He said there is an urgent need for a new secondary school within his parliamentary constituency, especially to serve students from the Mambong and Tarat state constituencies, which are located within Puncak Borneo.
The new school is intended to address overcrowding issues at existing secondary schools in the area.
Currently, most students from Mambong and Tarat attend SMK Siburan, SMK Padawan, SMK Tun Abdul Razak, SMK Tarat, and SMK Penrissen.
Although SMK Penrissen is not located in Puncak Borneo, many of its students come from the area.
Overcrowding occurs when student enrollment exceeds the capacity a school is designed to accommodate.
In addition, Willie said the MOE is actively identifying suitable sites for a proposed new secondary school in Serembu, another state constituency within Puncak Borneo.
To meet current and future educational needs, the MOE, through the Sarawak Education Department, plans to submit an application for the construction of a new building comprising 12 classrooms at SMK Paku under Rolling Plan 2 of the 13th Malaysia Plan, scheduled for 2027.
Currently, most students from Serembu pursue their secondary education at SMK Paku.
Willie noted that, as of January 2025, SMK Paku had an enrollment of 1,367 students.
The school has a capacity of 30 classrooms and operates 46 classes in two sessions.
