ALOR STAR: Deputy Education Minister Wong Kah Wong has urged the Kedah state government to read and understand the existing public school engagement guidelines.
Wong said all parties are subject to observing the guidelines.
"Firstly, the Education Ministry has set guidelines for VIPs to enter public schools or to organise any activity with the schools.
"We (the Education Ministry) have repeatedly responded on this issue to the elected representatives who raised this matter in the parliament. All parties are responsible for complying with the guidelines.
"I hope the (Kedah) state government will read the guidelines thoroughly and the Education Ministry is sticking to the guidelines," he told reporters after opening Kedah DAP annual convention here today.
Present were state DAP chairman Tan Kok Yew and Kedah Pakatan Harapan chairman Datuk Mahfuz Omar.
Wong, who is also DAP central executive committee member, was responding to a statement issued by the state government yesterday.
In the statement, the state education, religious, communications and information committee chairman Datuk Mohd Azam Abd Samat criticised several ministers and deputy ministers for allegedly playing up partisan politics in the government administration.
He further claimed that the state Education Department has 'instructed' school principals and Parents-Teacher Association presidents from attending a programme organised by the Kedah government to address the school dropout issue amongst students in the state.
Azam questioned the rationale behind the instruction as the programme was held outside public schools.