Are You Listening Putrajaya?
By Geetha K

The townhall’s topic screamed ‘Let’s Regain Our Roar’ to drive home the desperate need for our policy makers to address the “challenges Malaysia faces in its drive to become an economic and education powerhouse (Asian Tiger).”

Going by the credentials of the panellists and the fact the opening address was by the deputy education minister, it was clear the organisers were thinking of reform through overhauling Malaysia’s tattered education system.

The deputy minister had to rush off after delivering his opening speech where he ever so lightly touched on Malaysia’s dismal showing in the recent PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) rating, admitting there were weaknesses his ministry was “seriously looking into”.

The packed hall then heard the familiar laments about the country’s sinking public education system and its impact: policy flip-flops, loss of meritocracy, damaging role of race and religion, suspect credibility of teachers and academics, Islamisation of the curriculum and institutions, big divide between the private and public systems, trend of educated Malays preferring religious schools for their children, other nations overtaking Malaysia, etc.

There were understandably more grievances than solutions. A palpable air of frustration and hopelessness lingered. The general consensus, however, was that we must keep the good fight going, even as government after government continues to turn a deaf ear, and at best offers lip service.

The panellists suggested removing race and religion and returning to principles of integrity and genuine meritocracy, while in the audience there was the usual murmurs of “we just need to go back two generations to see how well we were once doing” referring to the era before corruption and political meddling became the mainstay.

Interestingly, a day before the townhall I received a video of a CNA documentary based on the latest PISA report titled ‘How Politics Is Behind Malaysia’s Education Reforms’. Has to be Singapore that highlights our shame!

If our government is honest about addressing this decades long dilemma they should watch this documentary, which begins with prime minister Anwar Ibrahim questioning why Malaysia’s education ranks at the bottom among the seven ASEAN countries. He goes on to say “we must know why we are in this state and we cannot be in denial.”

There was one tried and tested solution in the documentary, which I liked and which the prime minister could adopt: The Sarawak Approach!

Utilising the Malaysia Agreement (MA63) which gives the two Borneo states autonomy over certain policies, Sarawak has spearheaded its own reform and is doing remarkably well, unlike Sabah, that remains weighted down by the peninsula’s influence.

Sarawak schools focus on teaching core subjects in English, place emphasis on hiring teachers of calibre and steer well-clear of the peninsula’s divisive, polarising policies – something for the once-vociferous Reformasi team in government to chew on if its serious about shedding its waning reputation.

CNA video at link below....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCj5wfAQWok

Geetha K completed a niche memoir writing masterclass in London. Her first novel, The Seat, was published in Malaysia in 2020 by Fixi. In 2023, she co-authored Racket Boy – Where’s My Country, published in the UK by Troubador, and in 2024 by Gerakbudaya in Malaysia and Saga Solutions in India. She's currently plotting her next caper.