Press Statement by Parliamentary Opposition Leader, DAP Secretary-General and MP for Tanjung, Lim Kit Siang, in Petaling Jaya of Friday, 3rd August 1990:
DAP wants the final draft of the Education Bill to be made public even with the establishment of the 1990 Education Act Consultative Council.
The announcement by education minister, Anwar Ibrahim, that the cabinet has approved the setting up of a Education Act 1990 Consultative Council raises several questions, the most important of which is whether this is a ruse for the Barisan Nasional government to suppress the full contents and purpose of the Education Bill 1990 from the public until after the next general elections.
The education minister’s announcement has come as a surprise, for the nation had repeatedly
told that the government was in the final stages of completing the Education Bill – and the
deputy education minister, Woon See Chin, was on public record in June as saying that in
the Education Bill could not be tabled in the June meeting of parliament, its contents would
be made public in July.
This is now August and the contents of the bill has not been made public. Instead, there is
further dragging of feet by the education minister.
With the long history of broken promises and unfulfilled pledges about the Education Bill
by both the education minister, Anwar Ibrahim, and his deputy education minister, the
public cannot be blamed is they view Anwar’s latest announcement with great skepticism
and wonder whether it is only the latest Barisan Nasional Government’s delaying tactics
until after the next general elections.