Maszlee's Aide Says 'Pledge' To Include 1MDB In History Textbooks Was A Misunderstanding
Maszlee only said that the 1MDB issue "will enter the annals of Malaysian history."
By Katrina Khairul Azman — 04 Dec 2018, 12:07 PM
Reports that Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik pledged to incorporate the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal in the Malaysian History syllabus in schools were inaccurate, according to his press secretary Shahrul Aman Mohd Saari
"I can give you my assurance that the 1MDB issue will be included in Malaysian history so that the future generations will not repeat it," Maszlee was quoted as saying by Free Malaysia Today during Question Time in Dewan Rakyat yesterday, 3 December.
"I want to stress that Maszlee did not say that the 1MDB case will be entered into the Malaysian History syllabus," he wrote in a statement published today, 4 December
Shahrul Aman explained that Maszlee only said that the 1MDB issue "will enter the annals of Malaysian history," and urged the media to make corrections to avoid confusion among the public.
He added that any decision on whether the 1MDB scandal is entered into the syllabus will depend on the Education Ministry's curriculum research committee, Malaysiakini reported.
However, the Education Ministry has "no objections" if the issue is made a case study at tertiary education institutions "for the sake of enriching intellectual discourse."
Before the issue was clarified, former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak took to Facebook to share his thoughts on the subject.
"I think it will not be long before Maszlee himself will enter the history books," he wrote.
"There is a time and place for politics, and it is not in school," Najib said in the post, which has garnered over 1,000 shares at the time of writing.
"Do not use our children, do not persecute their future," he added.