PUTRAJAYA: The Education Ministry has criticised an opposition leader for claiming that only RM4.5 million was allocated under the 2018 Budget to boost Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET) in the country.
Its deputy minister Datuk P. Kamalanathan said in fact, a total of RM4.9 billion will be allocated to implement the TVET Malaysia Master Plan.
Kamalanathan was responding to Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Azmin Ali’s statement on Friday, in which he claimed that the federal government allocated only RM4.5 million to boost TVET nationwide.
Azmin had said this was a pittance compared to the RM50 million the Selangor state government planned to spend on TVET.
“That's the problem with the opposition. He (Azmin) is blind. He did not read (the budget) properly.
“The RM4.5 million is for TVET scholarships,” he told reporters after officiating McDonald’s Back-To-School community programme here today.
“He’s so busy trying to find fault with us and didn’t have the time to read. If he doesn't know how to read (the budget), come and see us. We'll teach him how to read,” Kamalanathan quipped.
Kamalanathan assured the public that education remained one of the government’s top priorities.
“The Education Ministry will ensure that students are intellectually, spiritually, emotionally and physically balanced. This is in line with our National Education Blueprint.”
Under the new budget announcement, the government took another step forward by providing a bigger allocation for TVET institutions, which is RM0.3 billion higher than last year's allocation of RM4.6 billion.
The government will also offer 100 TVET scholarships to outstanding students, amounting to RM4.5 million.
Meanwhile, all TVET institutions previously under seven ministries will be rebranded as TVET Malaysia and placed under the Human Resources Ministry.