IT IS often said that Malaysians have short memories. Thus, it is a timely reminder that barely a year ago, some RM8.4 mil was set aside by the Madani administration to facilitate the Jalur Gemilang-badge project for over five million school-going pupils.
While it may be seen as a noble effort to inculcate patriotism, some citizens have questioned the effectiveness of this programme and whether the budget could have been better utilised.
Vocal educationist Dr Annuar Ahmad has queried if the monies could have been better channeled to other much-needed areas in education.
“If the RM8.4 mil is used to provide a RM5 breakfast to poor pupils, more than 1.6 million pupils will be able to enjoy breakfast,” the MINDA-UKM’s deputy director was cited in a Facebook post by Malay language news portal TV Pertiwi.
“If we give each school RM10,000 to install the most basic CCTV, more than 800 schools will get it. Imagine if one school has 1,000 pupils, that means 800,000 pupils will receive the security benefits.”
Editor’s Note: MINDA-UKM a.k.a. Institut Pembangunan dan Kemajuan Inklusif Malaysia is a research institute at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) dedicated to public policy development, socio-economic research and inclusive national advancement.
It serves as a bridge between academia, the government and the private sector to address national issues and promote inclusive growth.
While claiming that any project designed to inculcate greater love for the nation is good, Anuar did ask if an impact study had been conducted and the effectiveness of the programme had been measured.
“If that is the purpose, there must be an impact study on this allocation. Has a study been done or not?” he demanded an answer from the Education Ministry (MOE).
“If so, how much has the patriotism index score increased after more than a year of implementing this programme?”
Elaboration further on his FB page, the senior lecturer at UKM’s Education Faculty argued that these pertinent questions needed to be raised as it involved public funds.
His post has generated 2.5K likes, 592 comments and 533 shares at the time of writing with many interested observers keen to share their thoughts on the topic.
Describing the project as “syok sendiri” (self-gratification), this unimpressed commenter argued that there was no discernible improvement of patriotic awareness among school pupils. Just who did this project actually benefit?
The perception that the project only benefitted a select few was evident. More than one commenter highlighted that this is how public funds are “wasted as there seems to be no discerning impact on pupils but there will be those who have profited”.
There were many comments from teachers presumably on how such funds could be better spent. Replacing old loanee textbooks or even improving decrepit buildings would be a better idea, countered one educator.
Another also surmised that it would be better to allocate some budget for transport to allow pupils to enter programmes or for competitions. There would be no need for teachers to use their own vehicles and pay for petrol out of their own pockets.
The feeling that the project was ill-conceived was clear from this irate commenter who grumbled that the badges even posed a safety issue, especially for primary school pupils.
Again, the perception is that the entire scheme was to enrich those who successfully tendered for the project.
Of course, any move to boost patriotism is to be commended. But it should not be at the expense of the many more areas in the education sector that needs improving.
As can be seen from the various comments as well as renowned educationist Annuar’s observations, there are plenty that needs doing in schools which should take priority over poorly thought-out schemes. – July 2, 2026
