Of Black Shoes, UEC and Being President of IIUM!

The recently minted Minister of Education, Dr Maszlee Malik has surely created controversy with black shoes, UEC recognition and ambition to be president of IIUM.

Malaysia’s public spending on education as a share of GDP was 4.8% in 2016 (according to Knoema). It decreased steadily between 1995 and 2016. Public expenditure on education as a percentage of total government expenditure was 21.5% in 2013. This is an investment for the future. So money must go to provide measurable results and improvements in quality of education.

From 2019, all Malaysian students are not required to wear white shoes anymore. They will wear black shoes. What a relief? So we need not clean shoes anymore! While at it, why don’t we have black pants and shirts, so we don’t need to clean them either. And we could be the first nation in the world to celebrate black as beautiful! I remember my secondary school days, we had to wear white shoes that were spotless. I mean even if you had green soles and it was the Bata “Badminton Master” brand you got to paint it white. Otherwise, you got to face detention or better still face the Headmaster! But it taught many of us cleanliness and to do little a bit of hard work on Sundays – cleaning those Bata shoes. So what values are we infusing to the kids – don’t bother cleaning, just buy new ones after a year or two?

Then there is the UEC recognition. It was part of the PH manifesto. But the Minister is wriggling in the quagmire of political expediency. Now it should be approved within the next five years. The majority voted PH in with all its moles and warts. So recognise UEC for cultural integration, wider tertiary options and happier students.

Next, he (the Minister) is keen to be President of IIUM. Rather than focussing on a failed education system, he wants to build IIUM as the next “Oxford” of Islamic universities. And was Oxford built in three years or 300 years (or more)? How could one operate as Minister of Education and President of a particular university? Is there a dearth of talent? Or, why don’t he become President of all universities and thereby show that he is fair to all!

Taxpayers’ money must be spent wisely, not on silly controversies. Students need a good command of Malay, English and Mandarin. The economies of China, India and Indonesia loom larger than the western economies. And we need people who could transact with them. While at it, fix the sciences and mathematics. It’s a digital, automated, AI world that’s happening!

Reference:

Knoema (https://knoema.com)

Source: Class Posot