Pakatan doubts Putrajaya’s ability to execute education plan

Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin hold a copy of the education blueprint during its launch in Kuala Lumpur, September 11, 2012. — Picture by Saw Siow Feng

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 12 — Pakatan Rakyat (PR) leaders have questioned whether the government is able to implement its new education blueprint unveiled yesterday and improve Malaysia’s quality of education.

Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said that there was a gap “between pronouncements and capacity to act”.

“I don’t believe the Umno/BN government has capacity to act on recommendations... by consultants although it may sound impressive,” the PKR de facto leader said at a press conference today.

Anwar said the prime minister’s approach is to “pay consultants with huge fees to come up with impressive blueprints”, pointing to the Government Transformation Programme (GTP) and Economic Transformation Programme (ETP) as examples.

DAP parliamentary leader Lim Kit Siang said that the past education ministers all came up with “one blueprint after another”, but the quality of education in Malaysia has still fallen.

“But if BN is serious about education...(it) should set up a Parliamentary Select Committee on education so MPs of all parties can give their views and make a report on recommendations,” Lim said.

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