JPA, PTP channel school aid to underprivileged students in Gelang Patah

A TOTAL of 170 underprivileged students from primary and secondary schools within the Gelang Patah area, Johor were chosen to receive the school supplies under the Johor Port Authority (JPA) and Port of Tanjung Pelepas (PTP) flagship Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) education initiative, Back-to-School Programme 2022. 

The school supplies were handed over to representatives from 13 primary schools and 4 Gelang Patah secondary schools by PTP CFO Muhd Abdullah Hatta during a small handover ceremony held at PTP. 

During the ceremony, each school also received disinfection product supplies consisting of hand sanitisers, face mask, thermometer, disinfectant liquid and spray tank, to further assist the school administration in ensuring best safety measures to protect the school children from Covid-19. 
JPA GM Kamaruzaman Munasir said that education has always been one of JPA’s CSRs. 

“We see this collaborative effort as a good channel to aid underprivileged students and allow them to pursue their education in the most comfortable manner. We believe that the children and the society around the port is some thing that we need to invest in for the future of this area and this country,” he said in a statement. 

“Education creates empowerment and it is the catalyst for upward social mobility. As such, it is encouraging to see a dynamic and leading corporate company like PTP giving opportunities to these underprivileged students to pursue their education in most comfortable manner as well as continuously enriching its surrounding communities via other CSR based activities,” he added. 

PTP CEO Marco Neelsen said in the same statement that PTP has been implementing back-to-school programmes for more than 14 years with the cooperation of many local parties such as JPA and Johor Baru Education Officer to deliver assistance and ease the burden of the needy, especially those in the Gelang Patah areas.

“As part of our ongoing relief efforts and in line with our commitment to shape a better future for all children of Gelang Patah, through this initiative, we aim to help the students have a positive and safe back-to-school experience by equipping them with essential supplies. We hope that all the children will have a brighter start to the school year in 2022,” he said. 

Meanwhile, one of the school representatives, Baizura Shariff, a teacher from SK Tanjung Adang, was grateful as she collected the school essentials for the underprivileged students in her school Baizura said, “It may not seem that much to some, but to those struggling to ensure that their kids stay in school, it is a muchneeded aid.” 

Apart from the back-to-school programme, PTP and JPA also pro-actively organised various other CSR programmes such as Hari Raya Aid Contribution, Communal Work: School Disinfection Programme, Community Outreach Programmes for Old Folks and Orphanages and many more to provide assistance suffered by those impacted by the ongoing pandemic.