#kerajaangagal33 – Why Education Minister Radzi Jidin unable to provide leadership to ensure schools a safe place instead of allowing the issues of period spot checks and complaints about lewd jokes by teachers in class to roil the country for nearly three weeks?
Yesterday, Malaysia diving queen and two-time Olympic medallist Pandelela Rinong endorsed 17-year-old Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam's call to make schools a safer place, and offered encouragement for the Form 5 student to keep on speaking up.
She said it was just like when she was called DIVA when she was trying to #makesportasaferplace.
The question is why the Education Minister Radzi Jidin is unable to provide leadership to ensure schools are a safe place instead of allowing the issues of period spot checks and complaints about lewd jokes by teachers in class to roil the country for nearly three weeks.
As both issues were first reported by Malaysiakini in the third week of April, a sensitive and efficient Minister would have exercised leadership in the first instance to ensure that schools are a safe place instead of exhibiting a denial complex.
Radzi failed miserably in both cases.
He asked which school had the practice of period spot checks and was furnished with a list of 15 schools with this shocking practice.
Four days ago, the Joint Action Group for Gender Equality (JAG) called on the Education Ministry (MOE) to be transparent in investigations on period spot checks and sexual harassment in schools.
JAG said it was willing and able to assist the MOE in these investigations and it had recently sent a letter to the MOE to request for a meeting to discuss ways to address sexual harassment in schools.
It said the ministry has the responsibility of providing children with quality education in a safe environment of learning that actively promotes values of respect for all persons and non-violence.
Ain Husniza’s allegation has been complicated by repulsive comments on Facebook purportedly by her own principal, describing her as “anak setan”.
If Radzi is not prepared to exercise leadership as Education Minister to ensure safety in school for all students, then he should resign as Minister of Education.