KUALA LUMPUR: An emergency motion to take drastic action against a teacher in Lukut, Negri Sembilan, who allegedly uttered racist remarks, was rejected by the Dewan Rakyat Speaker.
In his chambers yesterday, Speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia told Bakri MP (DAP) Er Teck Hwa that a special committee had already been formed by the Ministry of Education to tackle the issue.
On Nov 24, an invigilator at SMK Raja Jumaat in Lukut allegedly told a group of students to “go back to India and China”.
The teacher was said to have made the announcement over the microphone at a group of students who came late after they paid no attention to her.
However Er, who filed the motion according to Standing Order 18(1), questioned the effectiveness of such a committee.
Previously, he said a principal in Johor told Chinese students to return to China and that the prayer strings worn by Indian students made them look like dogs.
Minister of Education Muhyiddin Yassin subsequently said that he was powerless to take action against civil servants above the pay grade of 48.
Muhyiddin had added that only the disciplinary board of the Public Service Department (PSD) headed by the director-general could take appropriate action.
“If what he said was true, then what's the point of setting up a special committee if the minister himself said that he did not have the power to take action?” Er asked.
“These racist statements have not only troubled those doing their SPM examination but also affected the country's unity,” he said.
Football analogy
Deputy Education Minister Wee Ka Siong said that the Lukut teacher had already been relieved of her invigilation duties.
He also said that any further action would be handled by the special committee. “We will leave it to the committee to handle it according to the procedures,” he told reporters at the Parliament lobby.
Wee added that the teacher lost her allowances as an invigilator after she was dropped.
While he did not elaborate on what action the committee would take, Wee, however, used a footbally analogy to explain the situation.
“If you are a referee but are asked to take rest, what is the point of talking about what will happen or the consequences when you know you cannot referee for the rest of the tournament?” he said.
He also reminded teachers not to utter racist statements.
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