ADUN SPEAKS | Lately, much has been debated on regarding Jawi khat (calligraphy) in Malaysia. Clearly, this issue has been so politicised that it has deviated from the truth.

We must be clear on why khat was introduced. What is sure is that it was not for the purpose of Islamisation. Islamisation does not need khat to be implemented.

It is also not a question of the lack of discussion between the Education Ministry and all other political parties. Since when must the national education curriculum be drafted through consultation and blessings of politics? Leave those who draft the curriculum to their job. They have the expertise we do not possess.

Khat is not an out-of-date knowledge. Those who assume khat does not provide any benefit of knowledge clearly do not understand the meaning of knowledge.

What is sure, polemics and the issue clearly shows one important thing - how in Malaysia, we are clearly not sure what education foundation is needed in the country.

We must restore education to the right path, which is to stimulate sheer curiosity. When we expose vernacular school students to khat, it is done not to make them skilled in khat, what more experts in Jawi.

It is done to inspire a feeling of curiosity in them so that they will think and seek answers as to why khat and Jawi look like that. There is importance and value. We must plant in us the spirit to know. The best science and technological advancements are the product of deep curiosity.

The khat episode shows how long our journey is to become a developed nation, what more a developed race. Look at the narrative of the developed country that we use - ‘high-income country’, ‘Asian tiger’ and more, but not ‘highly developed society’.

To many quarters, only coding, science and technology, mathematics and English will make Malaysia and its people competitive. But they forget that Malaysia’s modern and forward development extend beyond science and technology.

Lest we forget, Malaysia’s strength is the country’s diversity, not its expertise in science and technology.

Investors wish to invest in Malaysia, not because Malaysia has the best talents in the world, but because of their confidence in political stability and unique racial harmony that has stood the test of time.

It is time for Malaysia to reflect on the propriety of introducing a liberal education approach as soon as one is old enough to learn. ‘Liberal education’ does not mean education without religious guidelines and living standards. Instead, it is the system of integrating humanities and literature with the disciplines of science and technology.

The rationale is that we live in a time of an explosion of information. Children today go through life with gadgets for tweeting, Googling, emailing and more. They are technologically savvy.

Even so, they must understand that science and technology must be beneficial to society. Knowledge linked to humanity, language, faith, cultural diversity and such is important. It will accord science and technology its human dimensions.

Imagine if a “manuscript” that is digitalised becomes just an exhibit, as there is no longer anyone to read and bring meaning to its contents. Imagine, if Malaysian history is taught using the latest multimedia but no one is interested in learning as the subject is not competitive.

Imagine if Bahasa Malaysia becomes an insignificant language because the global language is not only English but programming codes on the computer.

If this is not a tragedy to a nation, to a country, then I do not know the meaning of threat to civilisation.

Hence, the real challenge today is the development of the best education system for Malaysia’s future. Until now, the education minister (Maszlee Malik), education groups Dong Jiao Zong, and other relevant parties still do not understand this.

MOHAMAD HASAN is the state assemblyperson for Rantau. He is also Umno deputy president. This comment was translated from a post on his Facebook page.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.