KUALA LUMPUR: The Education Ministry is expected to meet Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Dr Mujahid Yusof Rawa on Wednesday to discuss on the future of tahfiz schools in the country.
The Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik said the discussion would be focused on centralising the administration of the schools and overall safety guidelines.
He said the ministry is committed in ensuring that all tahfis schools are streamlined in the education they provide and in making sure there are no safety risks at these unregulated schools.
“The proposal to tighten and regulate the tahfiz schools and it’s guidelines to be more centralised is a recommendation of Dr Mujahid, not the Education Ministry.
“I will discuss this with him at the Cabinet meeting this Wednesday,” he said, briefly when met after launching the 13th International Syariah Masters Forum (ISSF 2018), here today.
Mazslee was replying to a question on the development of regulating tahfiz schools under the ministry, following a complaint from nine students at a tahfiz school in Kepong who claimed to have been sodomised by their 30-year-old principal on Sept 13.
He also called on all tahfiz centers and schools to follow the recommended national curriculum so that students would get a more organised education input.
He said the ministry’s aspiration is to make sure all Malaysians receive the basic education provided by the ministry.
“As I mentioned many times before, we call on all tahfiz to adopt and use the national education curriculum. If they want to make a boarding school style of tahfiz, then they should use the day to teach according to education ministry’s curriculum and the later part of the day for religions education,” he said.
Maszlee also called on tahfiz schools that have yet to register with the ministry, to do so immediately, under the private school category.
“If you don’t, then you might have to face risks like safety and student welfare related issues,” he said.