I REFER to the announcement that teachers are allowed to get involved in politics.
I am shocked at this sudden announcement as I have not heard of any attempt by any group lobbying for this in the mainstream or social media. Such a group would surely be ridiculed.
We have often heard of teachers being overburdened with overcrowded classrooms, administrative duties, courses to attend and co-curricular activities.
Why then would they want to be further burdened by going into politics? Teachers in government schools are civil servants who serve the government of the day and are supposed to be apolitical. Let’s keep it that way.
If teachers get actively involved in politics, there is no doubt in my mind that they will neglect their duties as a teacher.
I cannot see any logic at all in allowing teachers into politics. Let’s keep education free from politics.
Already there have been many complaints of the substandard level of education in our public schools, declining respect for our public universities and the outrageous number of students being awarded PhDs and other degrees.
Many graduates remain unemployed or underemployed for obvious reasons.
We should, on the other hand, focus on encouraging those with excellent basic education results to go into the teaching profession, improving teacher training and instilling a sense of discipline and commitment to the teaching profession.
This move seems more of an effort to further ruin education in our schools and institutions of higher learning.
If a teacher wants to go into politics, I strongly urge him or her to simply resign.
Peter Joseph Pereira
Petaling Jaya
