KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 25 — DAP’s Zairil Khir Johari questioned today the lack of open tender for two foreign English language textbooks announced by the Education Ministry (MOE) to replace existing ones after only less than a year.

The Bukit Bendera MP said the procurement of local versions of the two books for Standard One and Form One students were done through direct negotiation, and had cost RM33 million compared to just roughly RM7.1 million for local books.

"While the local textbooks are subject to competitive open tenders, the purchase of the ‘imported’ textbooks through local publishers Pan Asia Publications for Super Minds and Desa Fikir for Pulse 2 were seemingly done by direct negotiation.

Primary school students will use 'Super Minds' from Cambridge University Press while MacMillan’s 'Pulse 2' (pic) will be used for secondary students. — Picture courtesy of Zairil Khir Johari

"Therefore, MOE owes the Malaysian public an explanation as to why they decided to replace the local textbooks with ‘imported’ ones at such short notice and without a proper tender procedure,” he said in a statement.

Zairil had previously pointed out that the books contain materials with Western and British context that cannot apply locally, such as references to an Amish teenager, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the Chester Zoo, and the Dartmoor National Park.

"On top of that, almost every page in the textbooks contain instructions and references to audio content which has been removed from the local versions.

"In other words, MOE has purchased these textbooks without their accompanying digital content, even though these books cost four times more than their local counterparts,” said Zairil.

Last month, MOE announced it will buy imported English textbooks to implement a curriculum aligned with the Common European Framework of Reference for Language next year.

Deputy Education Minister Datuk P. Kamalanathan reportedly said pre-schoolers, Standard One and Two pupils, Form One and Two students will be the pioneers of the new curriculum.

Primary school students will use Super Minds from Cambridge University Press while MacMillan’s Pulse 2 will be used for secondary students.