Friday, May 15, 2009

A Hostel in Memory of Donni

..... I'm so proud to be part of this :)

NST Online » Local News
2009/05/15

A HOSTEL IN MEMORY OF DONNI
By : Joniston Bangkuai

TUARAN: Soon, about 100 students from far-flung villages in Kiulu, about 20km from here, will no longer have to endure a tiring long walk to Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Tun Fuad Stephens.

Thanks to the alumni of Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM) Kulim in Kedah, who call themselves Killerbatch, and the Sabah Credit Corporation, a hostel is being built for the students.

The ground-breaking for the project, which is estimated to cost RM200,000, will be held today in the presence of the students and their parents.

To kick-start the project Killerbatch, which was represented by Raja Ali Raja Othman, presented a donation of RM56,567 to SCC general manager Datuk Vincent Pung yesterday.

He said the rest of the funds would be collected through more fund-raising initiatives such as the staging of a play entitled "Ghazal Party Queen" which is scheduled for Dec 12.

Raja Ali said the heart-wrenching story of Donni John Duin, an 11-year-old school boy who committed suicide two years ago to ease the burden of his poverty-stricken family, prompted Killerbatch to embark on the project.

"The dormitory will be named Asrama Donni in remembrance of the boy," he said.

Donni, a Year Five pupil of Sekolah Kebangsaan Kinarut in Papar, had apparently taken his own life as he could no longer take the teasing from his schoolmates who likened his food, which was packed by his mother, to dog vomit.

"We were all greatly saddened by the heartbreaking event when we heard about it and decided that we must not let it pass unnoticed.

"The hostel is our way to ensure that what Donni went through does not happen again," another representative of Killerbatch, Hasnan Jamaludin, said.

Killerbatch also noted that a recent article in the New Straits Times had stated that about 5,000 teenagers in Sabah had dropped out of school before sitting the Penilaian Menengah Rendah examination.

This was largely because of the long distances the students had to travel to and from school each day.

Describing the project as a bridge between Malaysians in Kulim and Kiulu, Raja Ali said it was in line with the 1Malaysia concept espoused by the government.

29 comments:

Mum and Roses said...

Children can really be cruel to each other and their words can hurt the more sensitive ones. Also kasihan the kids in Sabah.

MAMAMIA said...

Well done Killerbatch.

I think I kenal Raja Ali ni. He did his ACCA in UK kan?

Ibunim said...

Wow....Killerbatch really unites to help the needy.. Congratulation and keep up the wonderful works...I'm impress..

Memorable trails... said...

This is a very sad story.Yes kids can be very sensitive and low self esteem.It is the duty of the teacher to instill all the good values and virtues in them.
An applause to killerbatch..way to go to create ONE MALAYSIA!

anom said...

Congratulations Killerbatch for this great deed..

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Mum and Roses,
When I first heard about Donni, meleleh-leleh ayaq mata I. Kesian dia... too young to understand the value of his own life...

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Mamamia,
I think Raja Ali studied in UK. Sama la you and Min. He's the one behind this project.

Some killerbatch boys are still in Sabah for this. And we're so glad that this actually gonna happen :)

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Ibunim,
TQ.. but there's still a long way to go. To get enough to finish off the project requires a lot of time and effort. We're lucky to have dedicated people like Raja Ali to do this.

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Madam Gold,
Very sad indeed especially reading what the mother has to say. What a mere 20 sen can do to a family like Hina's....

BTW, Happy Teacher's Day!

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Anom,
TQ, but it's still in its infancy. Let's pray and hope that this will be accomplished in time :)

zue said...

salam ja,
noble thing you all did and do, wish there are more people or group like this.

Salt N Turmeric said...

Kak Ja, congrats to your batch for doing this. What a happy and sad story all in one! Poor boy. Parents must also step in and teach their kids not to be mean to other kids just because they are poor.

Daphne Ling said...

Hi Aunty Ja,

Yes, children can be very mean to each other, and that is why the anti-bullying campaigns in schools in Canada are so big--they even have anti-bullying week...

Here, they go all out to get children to talk about why bullying is bad, and why they shouldn't do it to each other. It's not fool-proof, and bullying still happens, but hopefully the little that is done has made a difference.

May Donni rest in peace, and may the asrama serve as a memory that we cannot turn a blind eye to things like these.

yus said...

Ja, I read in the newspapers about this and immediately think of you and our friends. Hats off to you, guys...

Ida Hariati Hashim said...

Well done killerbatch! Your kind gestures will be rewarded in the Hereafter.

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Zue,
It's still a loong way to go. But it feels so good to give back :)

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Farina,
It's sad. We can only teach our children, but then we'll never know what they'll do when they're with their friends... Sigh.

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Daphne,
That's a good thing you have there in Canada - Anti-bullying week. It'll be good if we were to have it here too.

You're right, it won't be foolproof, but if one out of 5 kids were to truly get it, that'd be good already.

Take care Daph :)

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Yus,
When the idea first came out, I thought it won't be realized. But somehow it has. Alhamdulillah.

But there are still many things to plan and do... Ja ni sokong kot belakang saja :)

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Ida,
Hopefully all of our dreams will be realized. I saw the pix of our 'boys' who went there.. and I got all teary-eyed!

ummisara said...

Salam...

Well done...well done.

:) Semoga usaha dirahmati...

ummisara said...

Ini batch arwah zaim hj abdullah ker?

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Edelweiss,
May the hostels be built in time for the students. And May Allah mempermudahkan segala urusan...

We're one year junior than Arwah Abg Zaim's batch. They are called Marsbatch - the 2nd batch in Kulim(1978-1982). Killerbatch is the 3rd batch(1979-1983).

Are you an Ansarian?

Chahya said...

Sedihnya...
Children can be cruel with words...
Parents should constantly remind their children not to be cruel to their friends... iskk..kesiannya..

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear Chahya,
Memang sedih... what harm kids can do without realizing the consequences...

Lee said...

Hello Ibu, really sad to read the story. Yes, even here kids tend to say unkind things.....and the poor ones always feel it.
But I blame the parents, not the school....parents should teach, show their children the way to live and never to hurt, say unkind things to people, rich or poor.
You keep well, Ibu, have a nice day, Lee.

ummisara said...

Salam..

Nope i am not ansarian.. :)
I am Arwah's niece ....

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Dear U.Lee,
Sometimes the parents can only do so much. I think it's more towards peer pressure in this situation.

Let's hope that the hostels for SMKTFS will be built in time.

You take care, ok?

Dalam Dakapan Ibu said...

Hi edelweiss,
Oh ya ka... you must be very young! I've been to your blog... comelnya that girl.. siapa tu?