The Education Ministry has denied a report by a news portal on a statement by the ministry's secretary-general, Tan Sri Dr Madinah Mohamad, on the suspension of two senior officers of the Examinations Syndicate in connection with the leak in question papers for this year's Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR).

The ministry, in a statement here Sunday, said the explanation given by Madinah at a media conference in Putrajaya recently was on the terms for suspension of duties, and not suspension from work, as was asked by reporters.

It said that Madinah told the media conference, among others, that the suspension from work was an administration measure that was not punitive and intended to ensure the smooth process of the investigation on the leaks in the UPSR examination papers.

"Since the announcement on the suspension of duties by the Deputy Prime Minister, who is also Education Minister, the two senior officers concerned were reassigned to other divisions which are not related to the Examinations Syndicate," said the ministry.

As such, it said, the report by the Malaysian Insider was inaccurate and could confuse the public.

The ministry also said the statement issued by Madinah to the media on Sept 20 on the suspension of duties of the two officers was in tandem with an earlier statement made by the deputy prime minister.

On Sept 12, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had announced that Malaysian Examinations Syndicate director Dr Na'imah Ishak and its deputy director of operations, Dr Wan Ilias Wan Salleh, were suspended from their duties with immediate effect over the leaks in the UPSR examination papers.

As of yesterday, the police have recorded the statement of more than 30 individuals to facilitate investigation on the case.