The chairman of the wing’s education and undergraduates bureau, Fadzli Roslan, said the watchdog should comprise representatives from parent-teacher associations, alumni, police, and NGOs.

He also proposed that the ministry set up an investigative unit in each school, apart from installing CCTVs at high-risk areas.

“This independent body is meant to protect schoolchildren and restore their confidence, not to punish perpetrators,” he told FMT.

Fadzli said the setting up of an independent body is among six initiatives it proposed to education minister Fadhlina Sidek, as part of PKR Youth’s school safety campaign.

They had met Fadhlina for an hour earlier today.

The other initiatives include trauma awareness training for teachers and wardens, and introducing a new module for parents to help curb bullying.

The wing also proposed that the co-curriculum be reformed to ensure civic and moral values are put into practice, as well as a support system for students, and anti-bullying intervention plans.

“We need to ensure that these measures don’t just look good on paper, but are carried out.

“We cannot curb bullying by playing the blame game. It can only be resolved by taking collective responsibility,” he said.

Fadzli said the burden of stamping out bullying in schools should not rest on teachers alone, but that parents must become “active partners”, while the community must be the “eyes and ears”.

Last month, the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) noted that bullying cases in public schools had seen a sharp increase over the past three years.

Its child commissioner, Farah Nini Dusuki, said the education ministry recorded 3,883 bullying cases in 2022; 6,528 in 2023; and 7,681 last year.

Secondary schools accounted for the highest numbers – 3,064 cases in 2022; 5,418 in 2023; and 5,689 in 2024. Cases in primary schools increased from 819 in 2022 to 1,110 in 2023; and 1,992 in 2024.