PARENTS should take the advice of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim for school children to clean toilets in a positive manner, the National Parent-Teacher Association said.

Its chairman Mohamad Ali Hasan told The Malaysian Insight that parents should encourage their children to maintain cleanliness not just in toilets but also in classrooms and other environments.

“Parents shouldn’t feel this is degrading for their children. Don’t be arrogant. If a non-Muslim country such as Japan can be clean, why can’t we as a Muslim majority country do the same.”

“We need to encourage children from a young age to be disciplined and humble,” said Ali.

Ali suggested that students with disciplinary problems be made to clean toilets first.

“The suggestion that students should be trained to clean their school toilets with the aim of educating them about cleanliness and looking after public assets is not out of the ordinary and we strongly support it.

“Back in the day, it was normal for students to be ordered to pick up trash from school fields, among others. Maybe as a start, students who have disciplinary issues like bullying others can be ordered to do such social work like cleaning school toilets,” he said.

Yesterday, Anwar raised the issue of dirty school toilets, which he described as a never-ending problem.

He said he was aware of the conditions of school toilets, which were mostly damaged and dirty and yet these basic facilities remained neglected as if left like that by those responsible so that students do not go to the toilet during school hours.

Recalling the time when he was the Education Minister from 1986 to 1991, Anwar said toilet cleanliness was one of the aspects that he prioritised, including instructing schools to get students to take turns cleaning their school toilets. 

Anwar said the move resulted in well-to-do parents sending him telegrams questioning his action because, to them, they sent their children to school to learn and not to clean toilets.

The Prime Minister said students need to be educated on aspects of hygiene, including cleaning toilets as one part of their instruction, regardless of their parents’ position.

In response to this, Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek tweeted last night that her ministry will work on the implementation of the idea.

“I welcome the prime minister’s suggestion that students are roped into learning about cleanliness at school. – June 4, 2023.