Hinompuka-made-easy sways Sindex judges
Published on: Sunday, June 22, 2014
Kota Kinabalu: Aware that knowledge on making the traditional Kadazandusun delicacy, Hinompuka, is slowly fading, innovative students of SM St Michael, Penampang, set about finding a way of making it easily available for the breakfast table in a jiffy.The result after trial and error was "Premix Hinompuka" which would be commercialised in the near future in its original flavour as well as corn, pandan and yam. Their effort won them the Most Marketable Product Award in this year's Sabah Invention & Design Exhibition (Sindex) Grand Final at Wisma Wanita, Saturday.
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Because they also scooped three other awards, the team of Clarissa Ann Chong and Form Two schoolmates Adelita Quintanila Cosmas, Amanda Danielle Laujang and Debrah Bryan Matasing also took home the Chief Minister's challenge award. Their other awards were the leader award (gold) and best exhibition award. "We feel overwhelmed with excitement! We didn't expect to win at all," they said. Elaborating on the Hinompuka idea, Clarisa said:"We decided to put the spotlight on it, due to few people who can make it nowadays, the difficulty of making it and also our interest to promote this local kuih to others."On top of deepening their understanding of this traditional food, their collaboration also deepened their friendship and faith. "Research was done via the internet. Advice from teachers, friends and family members were also sought. But, we won't forget God's blessings and assistance."
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The main ingredients used were black and white glutinous rice (pulut) that were brought to "Kampung Inobong" to go through the grinding process. This would helps villagers earn extra income once it is commercialised, added Clarissa.
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Preserving traditional aspects are important for her, Adelita, Amanda and Debrah. These four winners were under the care of their teachers Hildah Josephine G Kuyun and Cyprian Rian Jokinol throughout the project which approximately took one week to complete.Meanwhile, wind energy birthed the idea to create "windergy", an invention by Rayson Chia, Wong Chee Leong and Victor Lu who are keen on venturing abroad to further their studies.Like all budding inventors, Rayson, their group leader, was nudged to make his idea a reality. Had he not acted on his hunches or vision, he would not have stood on stage with his school mates at Sindex 2014."The best part was when we were conducting our experiment which was exhilarating! We were supervised by our Physics teacher, Lim Boon Kiat."These three geniuses from Tsung Tsin Secondary School bagged the best invention award (the best of the best gold) and were also recipients of three Apple products.The electricity produced through electromagnetic induction can be used to power car components such as radio, car lights and headlamps. It could even be connected to a power bank to charge it for further use. If stable voltage can be achieved, it could be connected to the car battery and reduce the burden of the alternator.What makes this product interesting is its clean and renewable energy, the fact that it is environmental friendly, of minimal cost and highly marketable.Among other awards include the best prototype award which went to SMK Kemabong, Tenom (Paddy Pen) and the Best Innovation Project with New Innovation and High Impact Award - SMK Kemabong, Tenom (Savy-U).Deputy Minister of Education 1, Datuk Mary Yap Kain Ching, in her sppech, called on the Sabah State Education Department to work with the Rotary Clubs in Sabah and FT Labuan towards developing a better strategy in carrying out the annual event."I will certainly be happy if the state education department director, Datuk Jame Alip focuses more time on ensuring that this unique event be further enhanced for the benefit of the younger generations in this state."Rotarians want to see more schools participating rather than just an increasing trend of entries from the present participating schools.The number of schools joining Sindex is still a mere 20 per cent or 50 schools out of a total of 225 secondary schools in Sabah, added Yap.She acknowledged that students are the coming generation that will drive the economy and country. "Without continuous creativity and innovation, our country will not be able to catch up with the rapid changes that are taking place."Principals, teachers and parents therefore play a vital role in instilling creative thinking in the minds of the younger generation.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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