Education Minister Maszlee Malik has urged a student who allegedly fell victim to a request for sexual gratification from her teacher in exchange for grades to lodge a report. 

"We urge those involved to lodge a police report. Don't hide (such a case)," he told the media at an anti-corruption forum in Putrajaya today. 

"We will not tolerate this. If there is a report, we will take action," he added, pledging that the said victim will be protected should she come forward. 

Without a report, said Maszlee, his ministry would not know how to help the victim.

The minister was asked to respond to a comment by MACC chief commissioner Mohd Shukri Abdull at the same event earlier about such a case.

"There was a horrifying case where a teacher asked for sex from his female student, in exchange for (good) grades, it happened at a secondary school," he said, adding that MACC could not take action as the student involved was not willing to come forward in the matter.

Beside this, Shukri (photo) also touched on a few graft cases involving minors that MACC was unable to act upon.

This included a student who paid a warden to take action, a primary school pupil who paid his classmates to make him the class monitor, and a secondary school student who bribed others to become a school prefect.

'Teach anti-corruption in school'

Citing his own experience where his children had been more willing to listen to their teachers, Shukri urged the government to teach “anti-corruption” as a school subject.

Maszlee said the ministry could incorporate the topic into the Civics subject, which will be reintroduced in primary and secondary schools by the middle of 2019.

"We will finalise the subject by next year. It will be a compulsory subject," he said.

Meanwhile, he said the ministry was probing an English teacher who was alleged to have been absent for seven months from a school in Kota Belud, Sabah.

"It is still under investigation, I have sent my officer to meet the family to understand what really happened," he said.

A student had filed a suit against her former English teacher for allegedly failing to turn up for classes at SMK Taun Gasi in 2015.

'Reshuffle claim an opposition tactic'

On a separate matter, Maszlee brushed off speculation about the Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's plans to reshuffle cabinet due to missteps by inexperienced ministers.

"(I met Mahathir yesterday), he asked me to revamp the curriculum.

"He asked me to continue his struggle. So, it is not possible that I will be dropped when I was given such instructions," he said.

"But, if you ask me why there are such rumours, it's part of the opposition's tactics to distract the people from issues such as the former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak and his wife being charged in court," he said.

Maszlee was said to be among the affected cabinet members, as his policies had generated criticism and ridicule.

"They (the opposition) attack me because they ‘love’ me," he said.

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