Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) has approved an immediate allocation of RM400,000 to upgrade various facilities at Terendak Mara Junior Science College (MRSM), which is categorised as in a decrepit condition. Its chairman, Datuk Dr Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki said through his visit today and assessment of the 41-year-old MRSM, he found that among the affected facilities were toilets, classrooms, teachers' rooms and student dormitories. "I have made visits to 40 MRSMs nationwide and can say that facilities in the Terendak MRSM are the worst,,, I don't want to point fingers at anyone but I have seen for myself what is happening here compared to the other 39 MRSMs I have visited,' he told reporters after the opening ceremony of the TVET@KKDW Expo 2024 which was officiated by the Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who is also the Minister of Rural and Regional Development. "I have instructed the principal and Education deputy director-general to make a list of priority (to repair) facilities. I will g ive them within a month...the most important thing is that the toilets, teachers' rooms and dormitories must be at a good level. Commenting further, he said apart from the poor facilities, students at the MRSM also face the threat of wild monkeys but it does not only involve students at the college but also at Terendak Camp as a whole. He said the Department of Wildlife and National Parks had also made various efforts to deal with the threat of wild animals including the installation of nets and several other methods to minimise the risk to students. "This MRSM should not only offer the best education but also the ecosystem and environment must be at the best level, and the principal plays an important role to ensure that the condition of the facility is well maintained," he said. Earlier, Asyraf Wajdi said a total of 48 out of 663 students Terendak MRSM were found to have stomach ache symptoms believed to be from food poisoning and eight of them were treated in hospital but have been discharged, The Hea lth Department will conduct a further investigation into the actual cause of the food poisoning incident,' he also said. Source: BERNAMA News Agency