Medals For Sale? Activist Claims Tamil School Students & Parents Get Cheated In Fake International Competitions
The more you pay, the more medals you get.
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Watching school children thrive academically and pursue their passions is truly inspiring, which is why they deserve honesty. Misleading them about their achievements only undermines the very talent and genius they’ve worked so hard to develop.
Activist Nedumaran Elangovan has always been outspoken about Tamil schools and parents of students being duped by syndicates.
In January, Nedumaran claimed that all the medals won by Malaysian Tamil schools (SJKTs) in so-called international science fairs are nothing more than a pay-to-win scam. He claimed that syndicates are behind this money-making venture.
For those who aren’t familiar with these events, Nedumaran shared that these events are typically held abroad and get parents to shell out thousands of ringgit for the trip. Schools are also made to fundraise so they can send children who couldn’t afford to go.
Nedumaran claimed the modus operandi is as follows:
1. The syndicate is allegedly headed by a Malaysian man who used to work in a government agency, but now has his own association.
2. Association members are allegedly mostly STEM Education Centre people who have made connections with Tamil school Parent-Teacher Associations (PIBG).
3. These people will approach schools and allegedly convince school members that the Education Ministry has sidelined them, that the system is rigged against them, and that they must support their own community.
4. The syndicate allegedly collaborates with similar associations in Indonesia, Taiwan, India, and Vietnam to organise fake science fairs.
5. The expensive event package includes travel, accommodation, sightseeing, and medals. In the pictures Nedumaran shared, the most expensive package costs RM2,200 for a 4-night stay at a 5-star hotel, which includes sightseeing tours, a cruise dinner, and even hotel transfers. It does not include airfare.
6. Since the event isn’t approved under the Education Ministry and it’s held privately, the schools allegedly have to push parents, PIBG, and private sponsors to fund the trip.
7. The syndicate allegedly charges extra money to coach student teams, including building their pitch and materials.
8. The fake science fair will be held in a restaurant hall, and the judges are allegedly comprised of friends and contacts of the association. If the school wants to win more medals, they need to pay up beforehand.
9. When everyone returns home, they spread the news of the winners to local media and also claim the Tamil community isn’t supported despite the medals the students won.
Nedumaran implores the public to think further
Nedumaran’s skepticism opened the gate to more questions. Why are there not enough of these students winning at national-level competitions? Why did the other ‘’kebangsaan’’ and Chinese schools not participate? Why is there no international news coverage of the international event?
He also asked why there are no pictures of the students’ inventions, but only pictures of them holding medals at the airport or other random places.
Nedumaran drives the point home by saying, ‘’No point raising RM50k to send 5 kids and 2 teachers to Korea, while there are students in your school who can’t afford track bottoms for athletics.’’
Whether the claims are true or not, Nedumaran’s expose shines a light on a problem that parents and educators cannot afford to ignore. If the claims are true, these alleged syndicates are exploiting the schools and families’ need to see children recognised and celebrated. And that’s really devious.
Parents and educators must exercise greater vigilance and ask hard questions to make sure they aren’t scammed out of money and to protect children from false hopes.
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