THE controversy over religious segregation at a Sabah mission school has ended, thanks to the intervention of the state Education Department.

“Sabahans are a model of racial and religious harmony. Many families in the state comprise mixed marriages, and there is barely any religious conflict among us,” state Education and Innovation Minister Dr Yusof Yakob told a press conference at SM All Saints in Kota Kinabalu today.

“I believe what happened… is that the principal may have overlooked the fact that racial and religious harmony is a bigger agenda than her decision.”

He said the issue has been resolved.

“The incident here happened not because of religion or race, but it was largely a misjudgment, and the school had overlooked the fact that racial harmony is the bigger agenda.”

SM All Saints, one of Sabah’s oldest schools, made the headlines after principal Dr Mary Gombidau ordered Form One classes to be segregated between Muslim and non-Muslim students.

An online petition calling for an end to the segregation has, to date, garnered more than 15,000 signatures.

Present at the press conference were state Education Department deputy director Dr Mohd Kassim Mohd Ibrahim and Mary.

Whether Mary will be replaced as principal remains to be seen, with Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik to decide on the matter after studying the findings of the state Education Department’s investigation.

A Parent-Teacher Association member had noted a rise in the number of Muslim students at the school, and requested more Islamic Education teachers.

This was rejected by the state Education Department, and the principal was “forced” to segregate students to ease the teaching of the Moral and Islamic Education subjects.

It was also said that the school carried out religious segregation due to insufficient classrooms. – March 18, 2019.