It was almost 2 months ago when SK Seri Pristana was in the spotlight for the infamous “toilet canteen” controversy.
But now, another school has made waves in the Malaysian social media with another school-related controversy – for installing closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras in both male and female toilets.
SMK Seri Sentosa spent RM100,000 to install 64 CCTVs in the school toilets in March, three months before it received approval from the Ministry of Education. What’s even more shocking is that some parents only got to know about this 2 days ago!
Whoever you are, from a child to a parent, one would clearly be infuriated by this move. Parents were not pleased by the fact that the school never sent any consent or notifications about the installation of the CCTVs. Calling the move “tasteless”, they were not happy to find out that their children were being recorded in the bathroom without their consent.
The school claims that the CCTVs were installed to fight gangsterism, cheating in examinations, cutting of classes and vandalism in toilets by installing the cameras. This left some gray areas since it involves the invasion of privacy of students.
According to sources, only four parents interviewed had heard about the CCTVs through word of mouth. However, SMK Seri Sentosa headmistress Hajah Rahmah Abd Haji claimed that letters of consent were sent to 2,100 parents of students, and only 30% of parents reacted negatively.
“The CCTVs were installed because the school had to deal with many cases of vandalism, students cutting class, gang fights, and cheating during exams,” she said.
Rahmah says that the CCTVs only point to one direction – the sinks – and cannot be moved. She claimed that the school had to spend RM90,000 over the past three years on repairs to damage of school facilities like graffiti, breakage of sinks and doors. Rahmah added that the CCTVs had worked into improving the discipline of students, praising that they can focus on more important issues other than vandalism.
Deputy Education Minister P. Kamalanathan commented on the situation and confimed that investigations into the matter are currently underway.
“We are currently investigating the allegations and also if the ministry was consulted (in approving the CCTV installation).
“We are also looking into the reason for the cameras and its impingement on the children’s privacy,”
