Najib gets bags of petitions to reinstate PPSMI

A group of parents has submitted more than 12,000 petitions appealing to the government to continue the teaching of Mathematics and Science in the English language (PPSMI).

About 15 representatives of the Concerned Parents of Selangor (CPS) were at the Prime Minister’s Office in Putrajaya this morning, carrying a dozen plastic bags filled with petitions for the prime minister’s consideration.

“As the major stakeholders on the PPSMI issue, we are most dissatisfied that the Education Ministry has persisted in not taking heed of our opinions, grouses and complaints,” said coordinator Shamsudin Hamid.

He and four other parents met with Saiful Azhar, an aide to Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, to submit the petitions.

Last month, deputy premier and Education Minister Muhyiddin Yassin had sought to mitigate the dispute by promising a gradual transition.

Students now learning the two subjects in English will be allowed to choose whether or not to continue with this.

“We believe it is only a stop-gap measure to placate parents whose children are caught in the study of Maths and Science by changing the medium of instruction from English to Bahasa Malaysia. Polemics aside, the fact remains that PPSMI is still rejected,” Shamsudin (left) noted.

He said the decision was “a non-definitive and knee-jerk solution” and urged for an in-depth review of the “total education system”.

When the government decided to do away with the policy, Parent-Teacher Associations were not even allowed to hold meetings to discuss the issue, he claimed.

“As parents we have the right to demand what is best for our children... most of the reference books for Mathematics and Science are in English,” he said.

“We are not questioning the importance of Bahasa Malaysia but we can’t ignore the importance of the fact that these two subjects are taught in the universally accepted language, which is English.”

‘Forward thinking PM’

CPS had previously submitted two memoranda on the matter, but the relevant ministries have yet to react to these.

Asked for their next move should the initiative also fail, Shamsudin said: “I don’t foresee anything. We are very hopeful and the prime minister is a very forward thinking leader.

“We don’t want to march on the streets because we are responsible parents and that is not kind of example we want to set for our children.”

The policy was implemented in 2003 by then prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad over the vocal protests of groups defending the status of Bahasa Malaysia as the national language.

In 2009 the government reverted to the use of the Bahasa Malaysia for the teaching of the two subjects - Mathematics and Science - which was criticised as a “flip flop” decision.