Tag: education minister

MP Muthalib forwards no-confidence motion against education minister

Independent MP Ibrahim Muthalib has forwarded a no-confidence motion against Education Minister Dr Musthafa Luthfy to parliament.

MP Muthalib presented a petition to forward the motion against Education minister, which was signed by five independent MPs, three Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MPs and two People’s Alliance (PA) MPs.

On May 19, MP Muthalib announced he would file a no-confidence motion against Education Minister Dr Musthafa Luthfy over the ministry steering committee’s recommendation to make Islam and Dhivehi optional subjects for grades 11 and 12.

A crowd of people who did not claim to be representing any political party or NGO conducted a series of protests over the decision outside Education Minister Luthfy’s house.

Luthfy told Minivan News that he had not officially received the news yet.

”I also heard that a such motion was presented to parliament, but the parliament has not affirmed it,” said Luthfy.

”I heard that there were three issues highlighted in the petition, ” he explained.

”The first issue they claimed was that Kulliathul Dhuraasathul Islaamiyya school was dissolved, which is literally not true,” Luthfy said. ”The school was not dissolved, rather we planned to place it under the Maldives College of Higher Education when it becomes a university.”

Luthfy said the second issue was a claim that it was his fault that Arabiyya School’s walls fell down.

”The third point was because the Education Ministry has decided to make Dhivehi and Islam optional at A-Level,” he said, ”but this was just a suggestion made by the ministry’s steering committee.”

Muthalib recently said that if the education system implemented the steering committee’s recommendation, students would be moved away from religion and their mother tongue.

”I cannot support such a curriculum that discourages the use of our own culture and language,” he said.

The government meanwhile launched a spirited defense of the Education Minister.

“This is a part of DRP’s plan to pick off ministers one-by-one,” he said. “First they plan to try and bring down the education minister, and if that succeeds they will then go after other ministers. This no-confidence motion is a shallow attempt to destabilise the government and the country,” said the President’s Press Secretary, Mohamed Zuhair.

“The DRP is claiming the government is trying to ‘undermine Islam,’ because an Education Ministry has floated the idea of making the study of Dhivehi and Islam, along with all other subjects, optional for school grades 11 and 12,” he said.

“DRP, led by its dubiously elected leader Thasmeen Ali, has demonstrated time and again that they will do and say anything to try and damage the government”, Zuhair said.

“There are some good, intelligent and responsible people in the DRP. Sadly, under the current leadership, these people have been marginalized and the hot heads have taken over the party.

“The DRP have no policies; they have no vision; they have no substance. It seems their sole guiding principle is to oppose anything and everything that the government is trying to achieve.”

He further accused the concerned parliamentarians “of using Islam as a political tool.”

”I think despite being an Independent MP Muthalib acts in the parliament with the spirit of an opposition MP,” he added.

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Education Minister and Deputy Trade Minister joins MDP

Minister of  Education Dr Mustafa Luthfy and Deputy Trade Minister Ahmed Inaz yesterday left the Gaumy Ihthihaadh Party (GIP) to join the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).

Last week the MDP National Council announced it was tearing up its coalition agreement with GIP, and requested President Mohamed Nasheed remove all GIP ministers from public office. Economic Minister Mohamed Rasheed was sacked several weeks ago amid ongoing tension between the two parties.

Dr Luthfy, who was deputy leader of GIP, said  he joined MDP not because he had been influenced or under threat of losing his job, but because he felt that it was “the best way to continue serving the people.”

”I discussed it with GIP Leader Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik before taking the decision,” Dr Luthfy said. ”He said it was sad, but said to do as I wished.”

Dr Luthfy said he did not condone criticising the government while he was a member of it.

”I do not know whether GIP might join the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP),” Dr Luthfy said, ”but I noticed that during a recent GIP rally held at Giyasudeen School, a lot of DRP members attended.”

He said that there was no split between the government and GIP, and that the tensions were rather between the two parties.

”The President told me I could stay in the position as an a individual,” he said, ”but I preferred to join MDP of my own wish.”

He said that MDP had invited him to join the party on several different occasions.

Vice President of the Maldives Dr Waheed Hassan Manik, who is also a key figure in GIP, said the decision by Luthfy and Inaz was their own and he had nothing to say.

He said their decision would not affect GIP and that he was not sad about it.

”[Luthfy and Inaz] discussed it with me,” he said. ”I told them to do as they wished.”

MDP Spokesperson Ahmed Haleem said both the Education Minister and Deputy Trade Minister had been serving the party unofficially long ago, in different ways.

”Now have they returned to where they belong,” Haleem said. ”It will be a progress for them.”

He claimed that GIP was now “close to joining DRP”.

”In my political experience I can say that it is very likely to happen,” he suggested.

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“Bad effects” if Dhivehi and Islam made optional, warns State Islamic Minister

State Islamic Minister Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed has warned on the Adhaalath Party website that making Dhivehi and Islam optional subjects at A-Level would risk “bad effects” to the country.

Shaheem said that changing the subjects from compulsory to optional was one of the biggest disputes regarding the new developing school curriculum.

”In my view it would wiser to instead revise the school curriculum and keep Islam and Dhivehi as compulsory subjects,” said Shaheem.

He recommended that A-Level Islamic studies be improved through the inclusion of topics such as ‘human rights in Islam’, ‘freedom of expression in Islam’, and ‘the Quran and science.’

”It would prove to the students that Islam is a religion fit for all ages, and will lead students to understand how developed it is,” Shaheem said.

He said that changing Islam and Dhivehi to optional subjects was like ”breaking down a good habit attached to the country.”

He said the school curriculum should be designed in a way that would make Islam an interesting subject for students.

”We do not have to demolish mosques because people do not pray,” he said.

The controversial decision to make Dhivehi and Islam optional subjects for A-Level students has sparked a series of protests outside the home of Education Minister Dr Mustafa Luthfy.

Dr Luthfy recently said the decision was not finalised and was ”just a suggestion proposed by the Education ministry’s steering committee.”

The move led Independent MP Ibrahim Muthalib to push a no-confidence motion against the Education Minister over the decision, while the Adhaalath Party meanwhile warned that Dr Luthfy “has put the final nails in his political coffin.”

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MP pushes no-confidence motion against Education Minister

MP for Fares-Maathodaa Ibrahim Muttalib has announced that he will file a no-confidence motion against Education Minister Dr Musthafa Luthfy over the ministry’s steering committee’s recommendation to make Islam and Dhivehi optional subjects for grades 11 and 12.

Appearing on Television Maldives’ ‘Q&A with Miqdad’ programme last night, the independent MP argued that the decision would undermine respect for religion and language among youth.

Muttalib claimed that Luthfy told him that students of Arabbiya School, which was shut down after a wall collapsed, would be transferred to other schools.

“We now believe that national education matters will not go well because of the attitude and thinking of the Education Ministry, especially Mustafa Luthfy,” he said. “So [Luthfy] should either make amends or resign.”

Muttalib, former treasurer of the religious conservative Adhaalath party, said he had drafted the motion and hoped to secure 10 signatures from MPs needed to submit a motion of no-confidence.

The decision

“Now the education minister is saying it was not his decision to change the two subjects to optional,” Muthalib said today. ”I want the minister to tell us whose idea was it then.”

Muthalib claimed that Luthfy told him last week that there was “no way” the decision could be reversed.

”If the education system implements a curriculum like this, students would be moved away from religion and mother tongue,” he said. ”I would not support such a curriculum that discourages the use of our own culture and language.”

While he could not predict how MPs would vote on the motion, Muttalib said “there are many MPs who respect religion.”

Curriculum

Education Ministry team
Education Ministry team

Luthfy told Minivan News today that while he had watched the TVM programme, he did not think Muttalib “was serious.”

He added that he did not want to comment on the no-confidence motion.

“It’s not true that I said in a meeting last week that there was no way the decision could be changed,” he said.”It’s not my decision. It’s only a suggestion by the ministry’s steering committee.”

Luthfy has stressed that the decision of making Dhivehi and Islam subjects elective has not been finalised.

A Curriculum Team at the Education Development Centre is currently at work on revising the national curriculum for the first time since 1984.

“Political coffin”

The Adhaalath party yesterday condemned the Education Ministry’s decision, characterising it as Luthfy putting “the final nails in his political coffin.”

An angry crowd protested outside the minister’s house on Tuesday night following the Adhaalath press release.

Sheikh Hussein Rasheed Ahmed, president of Adhaalath party, said today that did not wish to comment on the no-confidence motion.

”It is not our concern,” he said. “Our problem is that Education Minister is misbehaving.”

The State Minister for Home Affairs said the party had discussed the issue with Luthfy on several occasions.

“This is a national issue.” he said. “He cannot solve a national issue on his own. He has to discuss with the cabinet, parliamentarians and senior government officials.”

Senior officials at the Education Ministry has stressed that the steering committee’s recommendation would only be implemented following cabinet deliberations.

Main parties

Opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Abdulla Mausoom told Minivan News today that it was imperative that Maldivians “try to save their identity.”

“The school curriculum should also be designed in a way that would help save the country’s identity, which is religion and language,” Mausoom said. ”Dhivehi and Islam are both very important subjects.”

He added that the state had a responsibility to preserve and protect national identity and culture.

“The main reason why I do not like this government is that they never prefer to discuss any issue -and even if they did [want to] they rarely they do it- but they never would accept the recommendations and suggestions,” he said.

The MP for Kelaa said that the DRP parliamentary group will discuss the issue and decide its stance.

Meanwhile, ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Alhan Fahmy said the time had not yet come to take up the issue at parliament.

”It would be a very big issue if they were removing the two subjects from the school curriculum,” Alhan said. “But if it is optional that means any student who wishes to study it can study it. Students have the opportunity. I don’t see what all the fuss is about.”

Alhan said the issue was being blown out of proportion to serve political purposes, adding that the MDP parliamentary group had not officially discussed the matter yet.

Statistics of the Education Ministry show that of the 7,137 students who sat for the GCE O’Level examinations last year, only 32 per cent passed in five subjects, while 2,284 students qualified for higher secondary education.

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Education Minister has “put the final nails in his political coffin”, says Adhaalath

The religiously conservative Adhaalath Party has condemned a decision by the Education Ministry to make Dhivehi and Islam optional subjects for A-level students, sparking protests outside Minister Musthafa Luthfy’s home last night.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said that one police officer was injured during last night’s demonstration.

”Somebody from the crowed punched a police officer in the mouth,” Shiyam said. ”He was taken to hospital last night but has now been discharged.”

The Adhaalath Party yesterday issued a press release ordering its branches to protest against the ”incumbent Education Minister’s decision to make Islam and Dhivehi optional subjects.”

”It appears that in his zeal to secularise the education of this Muslim nation, he has put the final nails in his political coffin,” the press release said.

The party claimed that Luthfy had told Adhaalath officials in a meeting that he would take the issue to cabinet or parliament before taking a decision.

”Mr Luthfy should have learned a lesson or two from the recent controversy created by the Youth Ministry regarding the venue of Dr Zakir’s lecture,” the party said, “or the controversy about selling alcohol in inhabited islands. But obviously our Education Minister is a slow learner.”

”One wonders what is wrong with these people. They seem to be obsessed with creating one controversy after another,” it added.

Last night a group of people gathered near the minister’s house at around 10:30pm. Riot police arrived and dispersed the crowd after almost an hour.

Luthfy told Minivan News that the controversial decision of making the Dhivehi and Islam subjects elective was not finalised.

”It was a suggestion proposed by the Ministry’s steering committee,” Luthfy said. “It is not even a decision that has been approved.”

Luthfy added that it was not the responsibility of a political party to decide which subjects should be compulsory.

”I accept the expression of opinion in a civilised way that respects the rights of others, others,” Luthfy said. ”In my house there are many people who have no connection with the matter at all, and it is not fair to disturb them.”

Deputy Education Minister Dr Abdulla Nazeer noted that last year 10,000 students sat for their O-level exams, but only 1500 continued with their A-levels. Many others had continued their education outside the formal system, he noted, where subjects were not compulsory, he explained.

The Ministry would ensure the Islam and Dhivehi subjects “are available at every school where students are willing to take the subjects,” Dr Nazeer said.

President of the Adhaalath Party Sheikh Hussein Rasheed did not respond to Minivan News at time of press.

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