By Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye, Safety Advocate
KOTA KINABALU: The recent safety incidents involving students in schools have raised serious concern among parents, educators, and the public.
According to the Traffic Police Investigation and Enforcement Department a total of 559 road accident cases involving school students occurred nation wide from January to April this year.
Schools are meant to be places where children can learn, grow, and thrive in a safe and protected environment.
Any incident that threatens the safety and well-being of students must therefore be treated with utmost seriousness and urgency.
In this regard, the Ministry of Education’s move to finalise new guidelines aimed at strengthening safety in schools nationwide is timely and commendable. The initiative, developed with input from the Education Institution Safety Reform Committee, reflects the growing awareness that stronger and more comprehensive safety measures are urgently needed following a series of unfortunate accidents involving students.
The recent case involving a school van which knocked down a primary school student at the school gate is deeply disturbing and should serve as a wake-up call to all parties. Such incidents should never happen within school compounds or surrounding areas where children are present. It is therefore high time for the Education Ministry to undertake a comprehensive review of all existing school safety guidelines, protocols, and enforcement mechanisms to ensure that similar tragedies do not recur.
While guidelines are important, what is equally crucial is the need to cultivate a strong culture of safety in every school. In this regard, there is an urgent need to actively introduce and implement Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) programmes in schools nationwide
Schools are also workplaces and must comply with the requirements and spirit of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994.
Every school should establish an Occupational Safety and Health Committee comprising school administrators, teachers, staff representatives, and where appropriate, parent representatives. Such committees can play an important role in identifying safety hazards, conducting regular risk assessments, monitoring compliance, and recommending improvements to enhance safety standards within school premises.
Among the areas that require immediate attention are traffic management within school compounds, pedestrian safety at school gates, emergency response procedures, fire safety, building maintenance, electrical safety, sports and playground safety, laboratory safety, food hygiene, and mental health support systems for students and teachers.
Regular safety audits should also be conducted in all schools, while safety awareness and preparedness programmes must become an integral part of school culture. Teachers, students, bus and van operators, canteen workers, and contractors entering school premises should all be educated and trained on safety responsibilities and procedures.
The safety of our children must never be compromised. Preventive action is always better than dealing with tragedies after they occur. Every child has the right to study in a safe environment, and every parent has the right to send their children to school with peace of mind.
Every school should have traffic wardens on duty to guide students to safety when they enter schools or leaving after school sessions.
Let us therefore work together — the government, schools, parents, communities, and all stakeholders — to make safety a top priority in every school across the nation.
