Brewery companies funding Chinese schools do not lead to alcoholism

Deputy Communications Minister Teo Nie Ching said that fundraising for Chinese schools has been a longstanding practice since her secondary school days, and participating in such events did not lead her to alcoholism.

“However, I did not become an alcoholic,” she said, inferring that she participated in such an event before.

She was referring to the issue of beer companies sponsoring Chinese education charity events that sparked controversy recently.

Teo, who served as education deputy minister from 2018 to 2020, told Sin Chew Daily that the DAP’s position is clear.

“We do not encourage any form of addiction, though drinking alcohol itself is not illegal,” she said, reported Sin Chew Daily.

On July 19, Selangor Pas Youth chief Sukri Omar criticized Housing and Local Government Minister Datuk Aiman Athirah Sabu for attending an event where Tiger Beer donated RM3 million to fund a hall at SJK(C) Tche Min in Sungai Pelek, Sepang.

Sukri contended that such involvement of a beer company in educational projects normalizes alcohol consumption in schools.

Following this, on July 22, the Education Ministry issued a reminder for educational institutions to adhere to existing guidelines on program organization and donation acceptance.

Yesterday, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek insisted that educational institutions under the Education Ministry (MoE) must comply with guidelines when accepting donations.

These guidelines specifically ban donations from sources like gambling, tobacco, drugs, and alcohol, due to concerns about their potential negative impact on students’ intellectual, spiritual, emotional, and physical well-being.

In a related development, Ipoh Timor MP Howard Lee Chuan How disclosed that the directive against brewery company donations was implemented by former deputy education minister Datuk Chong Sin Woon.

Seremban MP Anthony Loke will consult with the Cabinet today regarding the revision of an Education Ministry guideline that forbids schools from accepting donations originating from tobacco and alcohol sales.