KUALA LUMPUR: The country urgently needs a competent and reform-minded education minister, as the current officeholder has demonstrated insufficient leadership and little initiative for reform, MCA says in a resolution.
At the third general assembly of the 30th MCA central delegates, the party called on Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to replace Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek, urging the appointment of a “competent and reform-minded” successor.
The resolution cited failures to address key issues, including bullying and violence in schools, unreasonable restrictions on fundraising and hall rentals in Chinese schools, lack of transparency in funding across different school streams and a persistent shortage of qualified teachers.
In his speech, MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong also called for the minister’s removal during any Cabinet reshuffle, describing the Education Ministry as creating “unprecedented” obstacles for Chinese primary schools.
He pointed to the long-delayed SJK(C) Kuek Ho Yao project under the “10+6” package and the dispute over the SJK(C) Poay Chai school board, saying both cases reflected unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles and confusion over established practices for school-building committees and boards.
“The current minister is not competent. This post requires someone who is steady, visionary and bold enough to implement reforms,” he said.
Other resolutions passed at the assembly included a denouncement of extremist elements in both the ruling and opposition camps who “exploit racially and religiously sensitive issues” for political gain, deepening ethnic divisions and undermining national unity.
The party also condemned the continued “suppression of freedom of speech”, saying such action weakens the public and media’s role in providing checks and balances and contravenes constitutional guarantees of free expression and access to information.
For internal preparedness, delegates approved a resolution mandating all party levels to synchronise with central leadership strategies, activate election machinery, complete preparations within six months, and fully mobilise for upcoming general and state polls.
