MASZLEE Malik’s main problem as education minister was his focus on trifling matters, said P. Ramasamy.

The Penang deputy chief minister II, who is a former academic, said Maszlee is a hardworking person, but did not implement the needed measures.

“The problem with Maszlee isn’t that he did not have ideas. He had plenty of them,” said Ramasamy in a statement today.

“However, (his ideas) were more concerned with micro or incremental changes in schools, and to a limited extent, public universities.”

He said Maszlee was generally more preoccupied with schools than varsities.

“(His ideas) were infrastructural in nature, rather than motivated by policy matters (aimed at) preparing our students to meet the global challenges of science and technology.

“Apart from the lip service, at the level of propaganda, there were no concrete manifestations of the policy on science and technology.”

He said Maszlee lacked the vision and strategy to implement programmes based on policy considerations.

Though the small changes effected by Maszlee have their positive points, he said, they do not reflect the nation’s broader education goals.

Maszlee yesterday quit his cabinet post, citing unfavourable press coverage and politics for his departure.

In his exit speech, he said controversies always overshadowed his achievements, and mentioned the plan to teach Jawi in vernacular schools, free breakfast programme for pupils, and cancellation of a contract to provide internet services for students and teachers.

Ramasamy said it was no easy task for Maszlee to take on the education portfolio after Pakatan Harapan’s general election win in 2018.

PH was limited in its choice of candidates for the cabinet, and made the mistake of combining the Education and Higher Education Ministries, he said.

“This merger… continues to baffles me.

“By having two ministries, the burden could have been reduced. But this did not happen under the PH government. Maybe, the PH government wanted to try something new, without realising that the burden on and high expectations of the Education Ministry would end up in Maszlee’s resignation.

“Whether Maszlee was the fall guy for the mistakes of the government as a whole remains unclear. I am also not sure whether more resignations will take place, or even a major cabinet reshuffle.” – January 3, 2020.