THE Education Ministry (MOE) plans to increase the number of guidance and counselling teachers if cases of bullying in schools continue to persist and show a rising trend, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.

Deputy Minister Lim Hui Ying said guidance and counselling are among the immediate measures that can be taken to address the issue.

“The bullies must be given proper guidance to understand why they should not engage in bullying. So, counselling is very important,” she said in reply to Ahmad Fakhruddin Fakhrurazi (Kuala Kedah-PH) during the Ministers’ Question Time.

Lim also said based on MOE’s Sistem Sahsiah Diri Murid statistics, bullying incidents in schools had shown an increase with 4,994 cases recorded as of October 2023, compared to 3,887 cases last year.

She said all of these cases have been investigated, and follow-up actions have been taken with a focus on providing guidance and counselling to those involved.

“Our objective is to ensure that bullying cases can be reduced, especially by providing appropriate guidance to both the bullies and the victims,” she added. – Bernama, November 1, 2023.