Bersatu Youth information chief Harris Idaham Rashid said the ministry’s “liberal stance” that education is a right for all failed to reflect the seriousness of the case.

Idaham said allowing the students to take their SPM would send the wrong message as it would imply that the ministry wanted all parties to simply “move on” from the incident.

“Meanwhile, the victim is left to face severe trauma, humiliation, and loss of dignity, especially due to the circulation of a video recorded by one of the perpetrators,” he said.

“This case should serve as a lesson to all – that there are consequences to one’s actions.

“The decision to let these four students sit for the SPM next month once again proves that the ministry is not taking a strong stance on criminal offences.”

He said if the students were guilty, they could sit for their SPM at the Henry Gurney School the following year and continue their tertiary education after that, which would not contradict the principle of education for all.

The suspects allegedly committed the offence on the 15-year-old victim at about 2.50pm on Oct 2 while she was headed to her classroom to collect something she had left behind.

Two of the suspects reportedly watched and recorded the incident with their handphones, and the videos they took were later circulated online.

The four boys have been remanded until Oct 16 to assist investigations under Section 375(b) of the Penal Code for gang rape.

Idaham said the rape case, and the recent spike in bullying cases across schools nationwide, showed that students today were becoming alarmingly bold in committing serious crimes.

He argued that one of the reasons for this was the education ministry’s failure to take a firm stance against such issues.

“Parents’ concerns about their children’s safety have reached alarming levels in recent times, and the ministry must take firm action to ensure the safety of students in school,” he said.