Politically active teachers will create tense environment, say observers

 

The Parent Action Group for Education says politics has no place in schools.

PETALING JAYA: Allowing teachers to be active in politics might be a recipe for disaster as it is likely to create a tense atmosphere in schools, according to observers.

Yesterday, the prime minister announced that teachers under the education ministry would be allowed to get involved in politics with immediate effect.

Ismail Sabri Yaakob also called on the education ministry to issue a circular on the matter as soon as possible.

Nusantara Academy for Strategic Research (NASR) senior analyst Azmi Hassan said allowing teachers to take part in active politics would impact the political choices of teachers as they make up 30% of government employees.

“Collectively, teachers are a critical group of voters who could sway political opinions of civil servants during elections, as they constitute a huge bloc,” he told FMT.

However, he expressed concern that allowing them to join politics would create a tense relationship among themselves due to differences in ideology.

He said politically active teachers would openly discuss their views with students, intentionally or otherwise. This would then influence the students and in turn it could lead to an “unhealthy” situation.

“These (scenarios) make me hesitant about giving a ‘blank cheque’ for teachers to openly join politics,” Azmi said.

Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil also questioned the move, demanding that Ismail and education minister Radzi Jidin provide an explanation for the decision.

Speaking to FMT, the PKR lawmaker wondered whether the move was made for the benefit of a few political parties, at the expense of others.

Echoing Azmi, he said it may result in the spillover of political sentiments among the teachers and students.

He also posed several questions, based on the hypothetical scenario of a politicised school environment that needed to be seriously considered.

“What would the dynamics in the schools be like when you have the federal government formed by Pakatan Harapan and teachers who are Umno members?

“If you have a headmaster who is a branch leader of a ruling party, would that create pressure among the teachers to politically align themselves with the headmaster?”

Fahmi also questioned whether opposition MPs, barred from visiting schools in their constituencies at present, would be allowed to do so now that teachers can join opposition parties as well.

He said the prime minister had made this decision unilaterally without consultation with the opposition leaders.

He called upon the steering committee for the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on political stability to discuss the ruling as it was never shared with the opposition parties.

Meanwhile, Parent Action Group for Education (PAGE) lambasted the move as it did not contribute towards the education of the children nor improve the education system.

“Teachers involved in politics will not have our children as their priority. Their time for teaching and attention to their classes will be further diluted.

“Children at school need more attention and intervention,” PAGE told FMT, stressing that politics had no place in schools. - FMT