He said party secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution will call for a party discussion, but noted the decision lies with the Cabinet.

“This is the business of the government of the day,” he told reporters after attending a Tawau parliamentary office Chinese New Year celebration here.

PKR had previously objected to PPSMI in 2009. Anwar, who was de facto PKR leader then, had asked the then Barisan Nasional government to abolish the programme.

On Jan 31, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, who is also acting education minister, was reported as saying the teaching of Science and Maths in English is the way to go for Malaysia to obtain greater skills.

PPSMI was introduced in Year One in primary schools and Form One in secondary schools in 2003. However, it was abolished in 2013.

In Penang, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said he would have to check first whether Mahathir was correctly quoted in news reports on bringing back PPSMI.

However, he said the matter will be discussed in the Cabinet if brought up.

In KUALA LUMPUR, Federal Territories Minister Khalid Samad said the Cabinet had not made any decision on whether to bring back PPSMI.

“If we want to implement PPSMI, it is not something that we can do overnight. The teachers also need to be ready.

“You cannot suddenly change the teaching to English. We need to discuss this matter thoroughly,” he said after officiating the Federal Territories Day celebration today.

When asked on Amanah’s stand, Khalid said the party still maintained its position in objecting to the PPSMI policy.

“If you want to upgrade the English standard among students, the way to do it is by increasing the teaching hours.

“It is very difficult for people to understand both subjects in a foreign language,” he said, adding that students will be better able to understand if Science and Maths are taught in their mother tongues.

However, Khalid said the party was open to discussions on the justification of PPSMI, adding that “we are all ears to listen to the reasons”.