SINGAPORE, Nov 12 — Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad revealed today that he has asked Education Minister Maszlee Malik to overhaul the school curriculum.

The prime minister told a high tea with the Malaysian diaspora here that he met Maszlee to discuss the issue a few days ago.

"The current education system is bad. It needs to be revolutionised. What they learn is not what they should learn.

"We need to change the curriculum and timetable of what they learn in school,” Dr Mahathir replied when asked by an audience member for his opinion on the state of Malaysia’s education system.

Dr Mahathir was previously named as the education minister of the Pakatan Harapan government, but he stepped down following public backlash over the pact’s election pledge that the prime minister cannot hold another portfolio.

However, the prime minister did not elaborate further on what aspect of the curriculum needs to be changed, and what the alternative would look like.

Both Dr Mahathir and Maszlee visited Tokyo last week, where the latter met with Japan’s Minister of Education, Culture, Science and Technology, Masahiko Shibayama, and visited the Itabashi Daiichi Elementary School, in Itabashi-ku, Tokyo.

Following the visit, Maszlee said that Putrajaya will look into providing free nutritious breakfast for children from families in the bottom 40 per cent (B40) group.