KUALA LUMPUR: Student safety, TVET development and social protection for industrial trainees were among the key issues raised on the final day of the policy-stage debate on the Supply (Budget) Bill 2027 Thursday (Oct 22).
Datuk Shamshulkahar Mohd Deli (BN-Jempol) supported the Education Ministry's decisive measures to conduct safety audits, increase the number of counselling teachers and assistant wardens, and expand school disciplinary powers to address student discipline and safety issues.
He said school safety should not be taken lightly, as failure to address the issue could undermine parents' confidence in the safety of their children.
"This would create a negative perception that both boarding schools and day schools are no longer safe for our children. The parents' concerns must be addressed immediately with more convincing assurances of safety," he said.
He also proposed the installation of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras in all boarding and day schools to enhance student safety.
In the same session, Datuk Awang Hashim (PN-Pendang) said the proposed establishment of a National Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Commission was important to coordinate the direction and elevate TVET to a mainstream component of the national education system.
He said the commission could ensure that TVET development is aligned with the government's aspirations to produce highly skilled workers in semiconductors, automation and artificial intelligence (AI).
"Without a commission, we feel that TVET is treated as second-class. We want to turn it into a first-class mainstream education system, just like the academic system we have today," he said.
Meanwhile, Datuk Seri Jalaluddin Alias (BN-Jelebu) proposed that the government review the need for Social Security Organisation (PERKESO) contributions for students undergoing industrial training, particularly those placed in heavy industries and high-risk sectors.
He said under the Employees' Social Security Act 1969 (Act 4), the employers' obligations to register and contribute for employees were subject to the requirements and provisions of the law.
However, Jalaluddin said for industrial training students, the obligation to contribute depended on whether they met the definition of an employee under the Act, rather than solely on their status as interns or allowance recipients.
He said he had received a complaint from the parents of an intern who died while travelling to work but had not been covered by PERKESO, leaving the family ineligible for compensation under the scheme.
"They do not want to claim compensation; they simply want to ensure that the same thing does not happen to other students," he said, adding that the issue deserved attention, particularly when it involved students from low-income families who were their families' hopes for the future.
Before the sitting was adjourned, Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Johari Abdul said 149 MPs had participated in the eight-day policy-stage debate on the Supply Bill 2027.
He said ministers would begin responding to the issues raised during the debate from Oct 26 to 29, 2026.
"Therefore, Yang Berhormat, tomorrow is Friday. Go home and take some time to relax and review what we have debated. When the ministers respond, we can interject and ask further questions, but this should be done with proper manners and decorum," he said.
The Dewan Rakyat sitting was adjourned until Monday (Oct 26). - Bernama
