A TOP Wanita PKR leader and former aide to Datuk Seri Fadhlina Sidek has come to the Education Minister’s defence amid mounting criticism over confusion surrounding haze-related school closures.
Sangetha Jayakumar, the Wanita PKR secretary, posted on Threads: “You all keep attacking Fadhlina but who is the Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Minister? Where is the Environment Minister?”
Her post came as parents and others questioned the Education Ministry’s (MOE) poor co-ordination over school closure following the worsening haze situation.
Fadhlina who is also the PKR Wanita head has said closures are guided by standard procedures and advice from MetMalaysia (Malaysian Meteorological Department), the Health Ministry (MOH) and the Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Ministry (NRES).
In essence, the Education Ministry (MOE) does not make the decisions in isolation.
Flip-flop haze guidelines
Sangetha’s post redirects scrutiny from Fadhlina to NRES which is responsible for environmental matters. Datuk Seri Arthur Joseph Kurup is the current NRES minister.
He is president of Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah (PBRS) which is a component party of Barisan Nasional (BN) and the coalition’s Sabah chairman.
Sangeetha was appointed Special Officer to Fadhlina in 2022 but her name is no longer listed as a staff member in the Minister’s office on the MOE’s website. It is not known when she left MOE.
She’s also the daughter of Xavier Jayakumar, the former water, land and natural resources minister who quit as PKR vice-president in 2021 following corruption investigations into one of his aides. Sangeetha is also a board member of the Port Klang Authority (PKA).
Public criticism of Fadhlina’s handling of haze-related school closures intensified after the Yang di-Pertuan Agong called for schools in haze-affected areas to be closed to protect students’ health.
Critics online accused Fadhlina of incompetence, arguing that MOE’s response had been so slow and confusing that it needed royal intervention.
The criticism grew as the Ministry changed its closure thresholds. On Oct 8, it introduced temporary rules requiring schools to close when the Air Pollutant Index (API) exceeded 180 or remained above 150 for three consecutive days.
Six days later, Fadhlina said MOE was reverting to the existing guideline of closing schools when the API reached 200.
The shifting thresholds and day-to-day decisions left parents, schools and employers uncertain about when closures would be imposed. – Oct 18, 2026
