Former Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli has called out Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek for getting school students on board to wish Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim a happy birthday.
The video, showing Fadhlina’s actions at a school event, quickly went viral, sparking criticism from opposition parties after she had students chant, “Happy Birthday, PMX, we love you.”
“Don’t mix politics with schools and children”
In a TikTok video, Rafizi said that while the Minister is free to show her support for Anwar, kids shouldn’t be pulled into political messages or anything similar.
He stressed that personal feelings and politics shouldn’t be mixed into children’s education.
“If she loves PMX and wants to show loyalty, that’s fine, just say it herself. No need to get the students involved,” he said.
“I feel embarrassed”
Rafizi warned that this kind of move could set a bad example, making it easier for future education ministers to rope students into showing loyalty to political leaders.
He said he’s always been careful about keeping politics out of schools during his time as an MP.
“Schools shouldn’t be mixed with politics or personal views. If someone else did this, I’d be angry. But now, with a PKR Education Minister doing it, I feel embarrassed. After this, no one from PKR can complain if a politician brings political messages into schools,” he said.
You can watch the full video down below:
@rafiziramli Sekolah adalah tempat yang sangat penting untuk kita. Sekolah bukan sahaja memberi ilmu, ia tempat memupuk budaya dan sikap. Bila Menteri Pendidikan Fadhlina Sidek jadi cheerleader ajak murid-murid sekolah ucapkan Happy Birthday PMX We Love You, saya kena tegur Fadhlina. Jangan kita campur adukkan kehendak dan kemahuan kita dengan pendidikan kanak-kanak. Kalau ya pun dia sangat cintakan PMX dan mahu buktikan kesetiaan, cukup dengan ucapan dari dia sendiri, tak perlu libatkan murid-murid. Bila dia buat begitu, nanti di masa akan datang tak salahlah menteri-menteri pendidikan akan datang meminta murid-murid, pelajar dan siswa menyatakan taat setia dan kecintaan kepada pemimpin lain. Sedangkan sekolah tidak boleh dicampur adukkan dengan politik dan pandangan peribadi kita. Saya cukup berhati-hati dengan sekolah. Sepanjang saya jadi Ahli Parlimen, sebaik mungkin saya bantu permohonan sekolah-sekolah di Pandan. Tapi saya hanya hadir ke dalam kawasan sekolah sekali sahaja, itu pun sebab dipujuk sangat oleh guru besar. Sebabnya ialah saya tidak mahu campur adukkan politik dengan sekolah dan anak-anak kita. Saya tahu kalau orang lain buat, saya akan marah. Tapi kini bila Menteri Pendidikan dari PKR sendiri yang buat, saya pun rasa malu. Lepas ni orang PKR tak boleh kritik dah kalau ada ahli politik masuk sekolah dengan mesej politik. #rafiziramli #SekolahBukanPolitik #AnakKitaBukanAlat #PolitikDalamSekolah #kementerianpendidikan
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This post first appeared on WORLD OF BUZZ.