PUTRAJAYA: The Cabinet will seek further clarification from the Education Ministry on the estimated cost of constructing a classroom, which has reportedly risen to between RM280,000 and RM520,000.
Government spokesman Datuk Fahmi Fadzil said the matter was not discussed in detail during Friday’s (Jan 30) Cabinet meeting, although infrastructure remains a key concern for the government.
"Previously, the Prime Minister stated that the government’s intention is to ensure classrooms are built using the Industrialised Building System (IBS)," he said at a press conference here after the meeting.
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Fahmi, who is also Communications Minister, said the Cabinet would follow up with the Education Ministry to obtain further explanation on the increased cost estimates.
The ministry had told the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday (Jan 29) that cost estimates to build a classroom had risen to the above range, from just between RM180,000 and RM250,000 in the 2016-2020 period.
Meanwhile, he said the Cabinet was briefed by the ministry on the implementation of several measures previously announced by the Prime Minister, particularly those related to the requirement for students to take Bahasa Melayu and History as subjects in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination.
According to Fahmi, the Education Minister informed the Cabinet that engagements had been held this week with representatives from various groups, including international schools, Maahad Tahfiz institutions and United Chinese School Committees’ Association of Malaysia (Dong Zong), which raised concerns related to the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC).
He said the discussions were positive, with broad alignment achieved between the government’s intended policy direction and the views of stakeholders present.
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Fahmi added that the Higher Education Ministry is expected to hold follow-up meetings next week, including with the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA), to examine pathways into public higher education institutions.
"After both the Education Ministry and Higher Education Ministry complete these discussions, they are expected to issue a joint follow-up statement," he said.
He also said that preparatory measures are already under way, including the process to recruit 20,000 teachers.
The recruitment is aimed at ensuring schools are adequately prepared in terms of teaching staff for the cohort that will begin the next school session, he added.
