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SEEING stateless Filipino children born in Sabah having no chance at getting an education, Marilou Chin felt compelled to act.

“They could not enrol in a normal school as they are not citizens and do not possess any documentation because both parents were not citizens of Sabah although some were born in Sabah.

“These children regardless of their status should not be denied their right to an education. That’s when I decided to set up Stairway To Hope (STH), an alternative learning centre in 2012 so that they will at least have some basic education,” she said.

With an enrolment of 280 students, each pays RM130 per child. However, many cannot afford.

Some of the children at the centre had birth certificates and supporting documents as their parents were IMM13 holders or had Temporary Work Pass. IMM13, which was discontinued in 2013, were issued to Filipinos in Sabah to allow them to work. 

She recalled the Education Department rejecting several attempts at getting a permit .

“I understand their reasons for being hesitant. But my heart was so big for the children and we went on to operate it.

In 2019 the authorities accused her of conducting an illegal learning centre.

“I asked one of the officers whether educating children was a crime? The officer instructed me to settle the issue with the authority concerned or face a hefty penalty and closure of the centre.”

“After much persuasion I was granted a Tuition Centre licence which enabled my teachers to continue conducting classes,” she said.

Witnessing children as small as one year begging for money or food in the streets without adults accompanying them disturbed her.

Teenagers were jailed for social wrongdoings. Some were sniffing glue and doing menial jobs just to get by.

“This makes a centre like ours more relevant so they can receive basic education especially those in the school-going age. They could at least learn certain degree of information and awareness and not become a nuisance to society as how the public perceived them,” she said.

Marilou giving words of advice to one of the classes. 

Assistant teachers Noraslina and Norasnita who were former students at the centre.

At the centre, they are taught Bahasa Malaysia, English, Mathematics and Science. They also learn soft skills such as basket weaving, cooking, baking to name a few.

Computer lessons are also taught so that they would have other skills which could help them in future employment.

She said of the first batch that graduated, a few had returned to Philippines for further studies.  

“One of them Normawati Kasim (24) is into her 3rd year in Nursing at the University De Zamboanga.

“This is what we want to achieve by giving them basic education. They would thereon move forward to either continue studies in their home country or start working and so on.”

The former students are appreciative of the start they received at STH. Normawati, said:

“After I completed my elementary and secondary level at STH, I never expected to further my studies and choosing the path in nursing.

“It was the encouragement and the school’s confidence in me, she said.

After completing at STH, she studied at a senior high school at Julian Soriano Memorial before doing her degree in Nursing.

Marilou said words of encouragement are important. Hence, they have the sense of wanting to do something good in society.

“We are giving the children their right to live better, through education, and there is no better way.”

With 18 teachers and a principal, monthly expenses run to RM26,000. She said part of the funding came from Department of Education in the Philippines after signing a MOU for five years contract.

They also receive donations from individuals, but this declined ever since the pandemic.“We were affected very much during that period. 

“There were times I had to folk out my own savings to pay up for the utility bills, rental, teachers’ honorarium and so on,” she said.