Yoursay: Not improving the education system is a far greater 'betrayal'

YOURSAY | 'Maszlee shouldn't elevate ignorance and stupidity of the flag design to the level of betrayal.'

Ignorance on Jalur Gemilang a 'betrayal'- Maszlee

Existential: At least, the ignorance regarding the Jalur Gemilang does not cost the public billions of ringgit, unlike the ignorance on 1MDB, Felda, Tabung Haji, Mara, Malaysia Airlines (MAS), Proton and others.

And above all, the kind of ignorance is of a different level to those who think that changing the colour of school shoes will immediately elevate the education standard of our students.

Anti LCCT: Everyone should give the Malaysian Basketball Association president Lua Choon Hann a break.

He has accepted responsibility over the national flag fiasco, apologised, is cooperating with the police investigation, and stepped down from his position.

Instead of continuing to harp on the issue, people like Education Minister Maszlee Malik need to speak up against those who really “betrayed” the country by stealing taxpayers’ money and lying to the public.

Hsu Do Nimh: Maszlee has described ignorance (about the national flag design) as a “betrayal”. What the minister said is absolutely correct, except the target of his ire is wrong.

Maszlee has done absolutely nothing useful about the portfolio he is holding for the last 18 months.

He is watching our education system crash and burn while he is pandering to the race-and-religion crowd. We are truly doomed.

Orang Tua: Maszlee considers ignorance about the Jalur Gemilang as a “betrayal”. I consider the dismissal of genuine concerns of parents over the state of education in Malaysia as a far greater betrayal.

Suldnaeusb: Do not assume malice when ignorance will suffice.

David Dass: Indeed, Maszlee should not elevate ignorance and stupidity of the flag design to the level of betrayal.

Making a mistake on the design of our flag is gross stupidity. It should not be treated as a crime. Certainly not as a crime of treason.

It is because of this flag incident that many of us searched the Internet to get information on the Jalur Gemilang.

We now know there are 14 points on the star and 14 stripes. I conducted a quick quiz among some friends and many got it wrong. They are all loyal Malaysians.

Of course, we expect someone who is actually making the flag to check on the design before actually making it. But the mistake happened.

What do you do when such a mistake happens? Make police reports. Conduct police investigations. Charge those responsible. What kind of punishment would be appropriate?

Perhaps the focus should be on educating children and members of the public on the design of the flag and the symbolism behind its various elements or design features.

Similarly, with the national anthem and the Rukunegara. And our Federal Constitution.

Anonymous 55131438850697: Not many people know the meaning of the blue colour in the Malaysian flag. It refers to the unity of the various races in Malaysia.

Instead of calling it a “betrayal” for not getting the correct design of the national flag, perhaps it is more meaningful for the education minister to utilise this opportunity to create awareness and educate Malaysians regarding the meaning of each colour and design on the Jalur Gemilang.

Speaking Sense: Our local politicians nowadays are always harping on minor issues.

Why play up a trivial issue regarding the national flag when the parties responsible have already said sorry and are being investigated.

If only equal attention and scorn are given to those who play up racial and religious sensitivities and engage in wholesale corruption - all for their own selfish self-interests, Malaysia will be a better place to live.

I don’t hear Maszlee, who is responsible for nurturing our future generation, talking about or condemning these evils that at present pose the greatest threat to the citizens of all races and religions in this country.

Anak Malaysia: Is Maszlee saying that he has never committed any mistakes? The education minister is labelling some oversight or ignorance as a “betrayal and cannot be forgiven”.

How about Maszlee’s black school shoes issue or his idea to provide free breakfast for all school students, which I consider a waste of taxpayers’ money?

The rakyat will wait to see how much leftover food is accumulated daily in schools.

Just a Malaysian: Since when is stealing billions and bankrupting the country considered forgivable, but a wrong design on the national flag is considered “betrayal”?

Drngsc: The issue of displaying an inaccurate design of the national flag needs to be investigated. There must be no repeats of the incident.

Whether the error is a betrayal or oversight is yet to be ascertained. But what is obvious is that our education system has been regressing for the last 50 years (since the 60s) and is getting worse under Maszlee’s administration.

The minister needs to leave the flag issue alone and concentrate on his core task - which is to give Malaysians better education policies (not only to change the colour of school shoes) so that our youths have a chance to compete in the fast-changing global environment.

Anonymous 1544340881: Yes, it is better for Maszlee to concentrate on important matters that his job as education minister requires, such as addressing the declining standards of education in schools and universities.

He doesn’t need to comment on extraneous matters with little relevance to his portfolio.

Anonymous 1371547149: I suggest we do a public flogging of the persons who designed and approved the wrong flag.

While our country’s governance goes down the drain, at least we can enjoy this sideshow, since we can't enjoy a good education system.

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