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Kota Kinabalu: Schools in Sabah must never cover up incidents of bullying, said State Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Datuk Dr Mohd Arifin bin Mohd Arif, who is also in charge of Sabah’s education matters.

“This is the official stance of the Ministry of Education. It is neither appropriate nor acceptable to hide what occurs in any school, particularly when it concerns the welfare and safety of students,” he said, after visiting Noraidah Lamat, the mother of Zara Qairina Mahathir, a Form One student of Sekolah Menengah Agama (SMA) Tun Datu Mustapha Limauan, Papar, on Monday.

Dr Mohd Arifin said this amid public calls for transparency in the investigations and social media claims of parents pulling out their kids from the school after the incident.

Dr Mohd Arifin who visited Zara with Director-General of Education at Queen Elizabeth Hospital on July 17, reiterated the State’s commitment to fully support the authorities in investigating the death.

“Let’s allow the investigation to take its course. We must wait for the outcome of the thorough official findings,” he said.

Asked about the presence of surveillance systems at the school, he said CCTV is typically installed in schools and that he plans to visit the school soon.