SK Seri Pantai Construction To Help Address Student Congestion In Lembah Pantai – Fahmi

KUALA LUMPUR: A new primary school, Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Seri Pantai, will be built on the site of the former Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Seri Pantai in Kampung Kerinchi here, to address the issue of student congestion at several schools around Lembah Pantai.

Lembah Pantai Member of Parliament, Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil, said the project is expected to commence in a few months once the demolition work of the old building is completed.

He, who is also the Communications Minister, said the construction of the new school is currently being fine-tuned by the Public Works Department (JKR) and the Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Education Department, including determining the appropriate capacity based on projected population growth and new housing developments in the area.

“We see an urgent need to build a new school because several schools in Lembah Pantai are now between 40 and 60 years old, in addition to facing an increasing number of students.

“SK Bangsar, for example, has more than 1,800 pupils, while other schools such as SK Bukit Bandaraya and SK Bukit Pantai are also congested,” he said at a press conference after the key handover ceremony for Block C at SK Bukit Pantai here today.

Fahmi said the new school is expected to have at least 36 classrooms, but the final number will be decided after a needs study is completed.

He said, in addition to building a new school, efforts to upgrade the infrastructure of existing schools in Lembah Pantai will continue, as most of the buildings are already old and require comprehensive maintenance.

He said his office would also examine the safety aspects of the building structures, including slopes and school fences that could be affected due to age and development works carried out in nearby areas.

Meanwhile, commenting on the handover of the new block at SK Bukit Pantai, Fahmi said it has eight classrooms and the building was rebuilt after being damaged by a termite infestation.

“This termite damage has been occurring for a long time and we found that the structure of these two blocks was already too dilapidated and aged, with many of the original wooden structures affected by termite attacks.

“In my first term (as MP), we did not manage to rebuild due to the COVID-19 issues and so on.

“However, we are grateful that today we can see the classrooms can be used again and the students can study in a very good environment,” he said.

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