Kee Thuan Chye, who retired from journalism in May, is an advocate of good English, having edited a column on the subject in a national paper for years. He also authored the book March 8: The Day Malaysia Woke Up, which has been translated into Chinese.
I was recently invited by the Education Minister to a discussion on “strengthening English” in schools, but from the way the proceedings went, it seemed like an exercise in futility.
The fact that it was being held inn tandem with another discussion to “memartabatkan” (uphold) Bahasa Malaysia speaks volumes. As we all know, the standard statement that comes with any official announcement on the need to raise our standard of English must invariably contain the apologetic caveat: “but it must be carried out without threatening the position of the national language”. This occasion was evidently no different.
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