Bring back rotan, equip schools with CCTV - Guan Eng
PARLIAMENT | DAP veteran Lim Guan Eng (Harapan-Bagan) urged the reinstatement of caning as a disciplinary measure amid the ongoing school safety crisis.
During his debate on Budget 2026, he said caning should be implemented immediately in all schools, including private schools.
Summary
Lim Guan Eng urges the government to reinstate caning in all schools, including private ones, as an immediate disciplinary measure to address the growing school safety crisis.
The Bagan MP calls for an emergency allocation to install CCTVs in more than 10,000 schools nationwide, stressing that Malaysians would support the move despite its cost.
He proposes the creation of a comprehensive anti-bullying and anti-sexual harassment support system, involving greater supervision, frequent patrols, and engagement with students and parents.
PARLIAMENT | DAP veteran Lim Guan Eng (Harapan-Bagan) urged the reinstatement of caning as a disciplinary measure amid the ongoing school safety crisis.
During his debate on Budget 2026, he said caning should be implemented immediately in all schools, including private schools.
"Bring back caning widely into school grounds by requiring all teachers assigned to cane students to undergo regular psychological examinations for the health and safety of teachers and students.
"Caning was effective during our school days when there were no such unfortunate incidents as today," he said in the Dewan Rakyat today.
Sabah Umno chief Bung Moktar Radin (BN-Kinabatangan) rose to express his approval of Lim’s suggestion.
Bung also urged Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek to seek a mechanism to restrict such issues in schools.
The suggestion to bring back caning was also approved by Azli Yusof (Harapan-Shah Alam), who said the practice has not been completely abolished, as it was still in the Education Ministry's procedures.
He praised its effectiveness, though he noted that current practices emphasise counselling and psychological interventions.
Bersatu's Rosol Wahid (PN-Hulu Terengganu) had proposed reintroducing corporal punishment in schools in August.
This was after the tragic death of 13-year-old Zara Qairina Mahathir in Sabah the previous month.
The nation was also shocked by the recent case of a male student fatally stabbing a Form Four girl at a school in Bandar Utama, Petaling Jaya.
The last two weeks also saw reports of two separate gang rape incidents - one in Kedah, and the other in Malacca.
Commenting further, Lim also suggested the approval of an emergency allocation to install CCTVs in more than 10,000 schools.
He expressed certainty that Malaysians would agree with this move despite the expense.
Support system
His last recommendation was for the development of a comprehensive anti-bullying and anti-sexual harassment support system.
He said this can be done by increasing supervision and monitoring in school grounds with more frequent patrols.
Schools should also engage with students and parents to educate them on bullying, including how to identify it and report it, he added.
"The Education Ministry is asked to refrain from taking action against any party that fails to curb this phenomenon or carry out their duties.
"We can only commemorate the victims who died by ensuring that the authorities do not allow tragic incidents like this to happen again," he said.
Earlier today, Fadhlina sought to soften her ministry’s top officer’s admission that bullying and sexual harassment cases in schools had long been swept under the rug.
She said Education Ministry director-general Azam Ahmad meant that reports of incidents in schools had been dismissed as minor.
Azam recently said that within the past three months of his helming the ministry’s director-general office, he had collected “a lot of data” on sexual harassment and bullying cases being “swept under the carpet”.
Reporting by Zarrah Morden, Qistina Nadia Dzulqarnain, Haspaizi Zain
