We Can Achieve More With English...

THE Government’s move to make Bahasa Malaysia a language of unity in this country is an astounding success and all Malaysians have accepted and embraced Bahasa Malaysia as our national language.

It has long been used at all official, unofficial, formal and informal functions and in our national schools and universities. Internationally, most countries recognise our national language.

However, with English as the second main language, and if it is made as strong as Bahasa Malaysia, we can have a great synergy, and therefore much more can be achieved by the country.

Economically, socially, politically and, more importantly, in the field of education, Malaysians will and can achieve much more if we can master two very important languages equally well.

Success will not only be achieved locally but globally, and our people can compete with all the people from all over the world.

Many countries use two or more languages – their national language and English. Countries like Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Brazil, Argentina, India, China, Ukraine, Poland, Romania, etc, are good examples. All these countries are very successful in many areas.

In the United States, besides English, many also speak Spanish, German, Italian and French.

If Malaysians, who are already strong in Bahasa Malaysia, improve their command of English, this country will improve by leaps and bounds.

We used to have one of the best education systems in the world from primary school up to university before the 70s and was acknowledged worldwide. We can always regain that standard.

It can be done without shelving the MBMMBI and all the policies and systems the Government has laboriously and steadfastly put in place.

To start with, converting some national primary schools and national secondary schools into English medium schools would be a good and effective way.

This way, learning English and making our students more proficient in the language can be done without having to spend a lot more. The authorities may also consider channelling some of the allocations already given for the Education Department and schools into this programme.

Getting teachers to teach English should not be a problem as we have many qualified local teachers. If need be, we can recall retired teachers.

It is not impossible for our country to be among the best in the world, not only in the field of education but also socially, economically and commercially, if the leaders are committed to that goal.

The people, I believe, are mostly for it.