Education Minister’s Trophy MADANI Generation Debate strengthens unity

KUANTAN: The debate arena is the best platform for developing students’ critical thinking, enhancing leadership skills, and fostering an appreciation for the diverse religions, cultures, and traditions of Malaysian society.

Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek said the debate arena, widely recognised as a platform that sharpens debaters’ understanding of various issues, can strengthen and promote unity among different races through teamwork in crafting effective arguments.

She said this was evident in the organisation of the national-level 2024 MADANI Generation Debate Competition for the Education Minister’s Trophy, which was held for the first time.

The competition required teams to include participants from various races and ethnicities, reflecting the aspirations of the “Bangsa Malaysia” ideal.

“The participants in each team come from diverse racial backgrounds, including some from Sabah, Sarawak, and the peninsula. This is exactly what we aim for in a competition, especially in debate, and the best place to begin is at the level of the Education Ministry.

“We see how the debate process requires cooperation, high understanding and support from all participants in each team. When the theme of the debate is discussed, it is a voice representing the views of all (races). So, this debate has successfully translated the aspirations of the Malaysian nation,“ she said.

She told reporters this closing and giving away prizes to winners of the national-level 2024 MADANI Generation Debate Competition for the Education Minister’s Trophy at the Gambang Campus of Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah (UMPSA) Gambang Campus here, recently.

Fadhlina said that the debate arena, as a valuable platform for cultivating students with mature thinking, demands precise communication when expressing ideas. This, in turn, helps to elevate and uphold the dignity of the Malay language.

The quality of debates must be prioritised in the education reform agenda, especially in upholding the Malay language. We can see how well our students can use and debate in Malay,“ she said.

“This is one of the initiatives by the Ministry of Education that we aim to enhance and expand across all school levels.”

The national-level 2024 MADANI Generation Debate Competition for the Education Minister’s Trophy, based on the concept of parliamentary debate, was held from September 25 to 28 at UMPSA. It featured 16 teams representing their respective states, with each team consisting of 80 participants from various races and schools.

This debate competition introduces an interesting and challenging debate format to students in line with the school institution as a centre of excellence, according to Fadhlina, will be made into an annual programme.

The debate concluded with the Johor team, representing the proposition, emerging as the winner. They took home the trophy, RM5,000, and a certificate of achievement, defeating the Kuala Lumpur team, who represented the opposition, on the motion “Kesedaran Literasi Undang-Undang Masih Di Takuk Lama” (Awareness of Legal Literacy Still at The Old Notch).

The winner of the Best Debater for the Education Minister’s Challenge was won by Muhd ??Iqbal Hakimi Mohd Zaidi, 15, of Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Zone R 1, Wangsa Maju. He took home RM500, a trophy and a certificate.

“When I was in primary school, I was an introvert and didn’t know how to communicate with students of other races. But, when I entered secondary school, teacher Mohd Bakri Talib helped me by making me participate in various activities, like discussions, poetry reading, oratory, which helped build my confidence,“ he said.

The winner of the Best Debate for the MADANI Generation was Varshini Manimaran, 16, of SMK Bandar Putra, Kulai 2, Johor, who sees the debate arena as the best platform to nurture racial harmony.