KUALA TERENGGANU: The contract for a canteen operator at a boarding school in Kuala Nerus allegedly involved in a food poisoning incident recently will not be renewed, said Terengganu Education Department director Jelani Sulong.
He said the contract is set to end in November, and the canteen operator had submitted an application to extend it for another year.
"However, given the current circumstances, the contract will conclude at the end of this year,” he told reporters after the launch of the Al-Quran Di Hati programme by Yang Dipertuan Muda Terengganu Tengku Muhammad Ismail Sultan Mizan at Sekolah Kebangsaan Serada here on Monday (Aug 26).
Jelani said the incident, reported on Aug 15 and involved 32 students aged 13 to 17 who exhibited symptoms after consuming fried eggs prepared by the canteen operator, was partly due to negligence by the school.
"Fortunately, all students have returned to school. We are awaiting the results of the Terengganu Health Department investigation for further confirmation.
"We will also issue a circular to schools to remind them to remain vigilant and pay close attention to canteen operations to prevent such incidents from recurring,” he said.
Earlier, the state health department had ordered the closure of the school canteen for 14 days until the end of this month under Section 18 (1)(d) of the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 for sanitisation work.
Meanwhile, Jelani said that through the Al-Quran Di Hati programme, a total of 352 primary schools and 154 secondary schools in Terengganu would start their daily school sessions with the reading of the Quran and its translation for 15 minutes or one page.
He said that although the initiative began last year, Monday's launch would further strengthen the programme, which requires active participation from all schools in the state.
"One of the department's key performance indicators is to ensure primary school students complete reading the Quran before entering secondary school.
"The programme uses the Baca Ikut Guru (BIG) system, where each class will have two teachers guiding the recitations, and the progress will be recorded in the Al-Quran achievement record,” he said. - Bernama
