A noble intention by a person doesn't nullify the importance of him or her being responsible on the outcome. Leaders always speak about their intentions well enough but are seldom thorough enough on their game plan.
When this is not happening, the subjects of the leaders suffer most. An example would be certain human-rights infringing laws used by leaders of some countries to avert militancy or terrorism.
A good leader must not only articulate his intentions well, but is responsible enough to ensure that the journey towards such intentions or goals will continue to be beneficial to his or her stakeholders. If there are snags along the way, such as abuse or misuse, cost escalation, confusion, grouses of genuine nature etc, it is probably an opportune time to reflect whether the action matches the intention or otherwise.
A great leader, above it all, must be brave enough to admit and rectify past "mistakes" made by themselves or their predecessors in achieving their goals, reverse previous policies or come up with better approaches to resolve problems. Regardless of who raised up the matter or harped on it, a great leader takes the necessary steps to remedy such problems.
When this is not happening, the subjects of the leaders suffer most. An example would be certain human-rights infringing laws used by leaders of some countries to avert militancy or terrorism.
A good leader must not only articulate his intentions well, but is responsible enough to ensure that the journey towards such intentions or goals will continue to be beneficial to his or her stakeholders. If there are snags along the way, such as abuse or misuse, cost escalation, confusion, grouses of genuine nature etc, it is probably an opportune time to reflect whether the action matches the intention or otherwise.
A great leader, above it all, must be brave enough to admit and rectify past "mistakes" made by themselves or their predecessors in achieving their goals, reverse previous policies or come up with better approaches to resolve problems. Regardless of who raised up the matter or harped on it, a great leader takes the necessary steps to remedy such problems.
PPSMI and Halal development are programmes linked to previous government administrations. Admittedly, there were strategic and operational problems associated with both. Strategy-wise, PPSMI which started in 2003 had created a big competency gap between urban and rural school goers. NGOs such as Gabungan Penulis Nasional (Gapena) and several political parties had been urging the previous and present administrations to consider reverting to pre-2003 state.
Similarly, assigning Halal certification operations to Halal Industry Development Corporation Sdn Bhd, or HDC, had created somewhat a strategic issue i.e. conflict of interest between the HDC's developmental intention and Halal regulatory nuances. Many relevant NGOs including Persatuan Pengguna Islam and Persatuan Ulama had voiced their concerns on such overlaps and had urged the government to revert.
So, it was a good move times two when the Cabinet decided yesterday to listen to the ground and reverse the decisions made previously on those two programmes.
Allowing the teaching of Math and Science subjects to be taught again in the mother tongues is seen as a correct move, although improving students' command of the English language is still top on the national education agenda due to the global impact the language has.
On a similar note, allowing Halal certification to go back under the purview of JAKIM is also seen as a positive move, albeit JAKIM having to improve their delivery system on Halal certification matters from now on.
It is timely for other "bad" policies, decisions and programmes which are still in force - big or small - crafted by lawmakers and executives with "good" intentions, go through a series of sanity checks.
Viewing matters within the right perspective and putting matters back where they rightfully belong is being Responsible and Fair, two of the seven core values of 165 manifested by the spiritually uplifted, guided by the commandments Allah SWT and the teachings of His Prophet Muhammad SAW.
So, it was a good move times two when the Cabinet decided yesterday to listen to the ground and reverse the decisions made previously on those two programmes.
Allowing the teaching of Math and Science subjects to be taught again in the mother tongues is seen as a correct move, although improving students' command of the English language is still top on the national education agenda due to the global impact the language has.
On a similar note, allowing Halal certification to go back under the purview of JAKIM is also seen as a positive move, albeit JAKIM having to improve their delivery system on Halal certification matters from now on.
It is timely for other "bad" policies, decisions and programmes which are still in force - big or small - crafted by lawmakers and executives with "good" intentions, go through a series of sanity checks.
Viewing matters within the right perspective and putting matters back where they rightfully belong is being Responsible and Fair, two of the seven core values of 165 manifested by the spiritually uplifted, guided by the commandments Allah SWT and the teachings of His Prophet Muhammad SAW.
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