Don't blame schools when BN practices divide and rule, say opposition lawmakers, activists

Gan Pei Ling Gan Pei Ling Updated 6 years ago · Published on 24 Feb 2018 9:58PM · 11 Comments

Prime Minister Najib Razak speaking at an event at Wisma Huazhong in Seri Kembangan today. Najib has received flak for blaming the country's multiple-stream school system as a cause of disunity. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Kamal Ariffin, February 24, 2018.

OPPOSITION politicians and education activists have slammed Prime Minister Najib Razak for his hypocrisy in blaming Malaysia’s multiple-stream school system as a cause of disunity.

They said BN should look in the mirror as the ruling coalition is guilty of exploiting ethnic and religious sensitivities to keep itself in power.

DAP parliamentary spokesperson for education, science and technology, Zairil Khir Johari, said BN practices the divide and rule policy.

“If political leaders propagate divisive politics and constantly use racially tinged language to secure votes, do we need to look further for the root of disunity?

“For as long as Umno and its BN allies resort to racial fear-mongering, threatening the Malays with a ‘Chinese threat’ and the Chinese with a ‘Malay threat’, then there is no doubt that Malaysians will continue to be divided,” said the Bukit Bendera MP.

He was responding to Najib’s claim that having multiple streams of schools in the country is bad for national unity.

“As you can see today, the Malays are in national schools while there are also the SRJK (C), SRJK (T) and religious schools,” Najib had said.

“We have no immediate solution. We can only try to impart certain core values in schools, such as learning to interact better with one another and to have mutual respect.”

Zairil said it is not true that if children go to different schools and study in different languages, they will not be united by a common Malaysian spirit.

“By this warped logic, every graduate from top boarding schools in the country such as Malay College Kuala Kangsar (MCKK) must be incorrigible racists after years of living and studying in a Malay-only environment.

“However, the truth is that schools such as MCKK have produced many outstanding Malaysian citizens who believe in Malaysian ideals and who do not hesitate to celebrate the strengths of our plural society,” he said.

Among the examples Zairil cited included Khazanah Nasional Bhd managing director Azman Mukhtar, PKR vice-president Rafizi Ramli and PH Youth chief Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad.

Other prominent MCKK alumni include Najib’s father, former prime minister Abdul Razak Hussein, Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein and PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim.

Zairil said the fact that Chinese vernacular schools attract a growing number of non-Chinese enrolment is proof that it is not racist and divisive in nature.

“At least 15% of Chinese school enrolment today is made up of non-Chinese. In some schools, non-Chinese students make up more than half of the student body,” he noted.

PH Youth chief Nik Nazmi said having a diverse education system is a strength in a multicultural country like Malaysia.

“A one-size-fits-all education system is no longer relevant,” he said.

He said national schools used to be attractive to parents up until the 1990s, but declining standards have led to a flight of non-Malays and affluent Malays to international schools.

As international schools are out of the league for the majority of Malaysians, he said the federal government must raise national schools’ standards so that it becomes the schools of choice again.

Ho Yock Lin, a social activist with a coalition of 28 civil society organisations, Gabungan Bertindak Malaysia that champions a diverse education system, said such a system does not cause disunity.

“You may have different streams of schools but if everyone is instilled with the values of patriotism, love for the country, equality, would our children become divided or learn to discriminate against others?” she said.

She said it is more important for the government to ensure that teachers have the right mentality and school syllabus promote unity, diversity and equality.

She added that politicians and community leaders who have been exploiting race and religion to sway the people need to stop doing so and set a good example themselves to the youth. – February 24, 2018.

Sign up or sign in here to comment.

Comments

  • It's not just the hypocrisy that is wrong. Najib actually believes govt education can make magic. He really believes desegregated school can make magic. He IS A MORON - he really is a lot like his good friend Trump intellect wise.

    Posted 6 years ago by Bigjoe Lam · Reply

    • He is not the only one to be blamed. He carried on what was started by his father and enhanced by Tun Mahathir .....

      Posted 6 years ago by Malaysian First · Reply

  • May 13 was created, accordingly to Tan Sri Abdullah Ahmad, a politician who was with Tun Razak on the afternoon of May 13 1969. After that, the riots was blamed on economic disparity between Malays and non-Malays. No RCI was needed to find out what caused the riots. Had a RCI been called, the conclusion would have been a state minister used the procession to stay in power, and that got out of hand. That procession had the approval of Tun Razak, who tried but was too late to stop it, after he had received a call from Dr Tan Chee Khoon, MP for Batu, and Dr Lim Chong Eu that Gerakan would not contest the post of MB for Perak and Selangor.. The government used the riots to launch NEP. NEP caused disunity, the government now blames vernacular schools for disunity. Had the government been sincere to want unity, NEP should have ended in 1990. Mahathir used NEP to perpetuate his hold onto power. Najib is worse. He continues with NEP and blame disunity on vernacular schools.

    Posted 6 years ago by Meng Kow Loh · Reply

    • Would Mahathir tells the truth before he passed on? Seeing the big hypocrite he is, I think he WON'T ...... in the political history of Malaysia, he may be the biggest villain of all ....

      Posted 6 years ago by Malaysian First · Reply

  • Najib is truly a moron thinking the Malaysian govt made Robert Kuok rich. If the govt did not give Robert Kuok the sugar king "key", he would still be successful in something else, all that would happen is there would not be sugar industry.

    Posted 6 years ago by Bigjoe Lam · Reply

    • Without NEP, Malaysia would have been one of the richest countries in Asia and the richest within Asean. Now we are mired in debt which keep on rising relentlessly.

      Posted 6 years ago by Malaysian First · Reply

  • Divide & Rule is the most effective method to control the population. Dictator uses this method to suppress and retain power. We experienced similar divide & rule tactic at our company. A quaky dictator will reward agency leaders that suck-up to him and penalized those that refused to suck-up to him. Within 4 years - he brought the company to its knees with massive losses, declining sales. Thousands bolted to join competirors. Read more fear management at changenow083.blogspot.com

    Posted 6 years ago by Chris Ng · Reply

  • First and foremost ban the ketuanan policy follow by upholding the constituitional policy as a sdecular nations. This will be the start of reformation and changes and everthing will fall in place. Madhatir and Anwar in PH must be also held accountable and their responsibilities to undo the years of damages culminating from both their racist partisan partneship regime in the 80's and 90's. Strangely I am just wondering will Anwar able to make that change as everyone is clamouring for him as PM to be ------ ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????.

    Posted 6 years ago by Lee Lee · Reply

  • The reasons for the crumbling national unity is not some rocket sciece that needs indepth research or findings. It is there in the public domain staring at us and even the blind can see through it. Vernacular school system was there pre and post merdeka when Malaysian unity was at its strongest. Unity and patriotism was never an issue and the beloved Tengku was loved by all. In the 50s to the 80s national schools were the school of choice of Malaysians. So where is the justification to blame multi-stream education as the cause of national disunity? Politicizing this grave issue or finding simplistic reasons for it will not help us resolve one of the primary deterrent to nation building. National unity became an issue after the 80s when the cry of ‘supremacy or ketuanan’ became the national philosophy dividing the people right down the middle. The pm needs to take a bold stand if he is serious about uniting the people. For a start the identification of political parties by race or religion must end. The colonial legacy of divide and rule and identifying the people by race and religion must cease. Enforcing the rule of law and equality among the masses must take precedence. Public institutions funded by taxpayers must portray a Malaysian philosophy and outlook. Yes, in our present political environment finding scapegoats for national disunity is akin to spitting at the sky. It will come back an fall on our faces.

    Posted 6 years ago by Nakeeran ponniah · Reply

  • The reasons for the crumbling national unity is not some rocket sciece that needs indepth research or findings. It is there in the public domain staring at us and even the blind can see through it. Vernacular school system was there pre and post merdeka when Malaysian unity was at its strongest. Unity and patriotism was never an issue and the beloved Tengku was loved by all. In the 50s to the 80s national schools were the school of choice of Malaysians. So where is the justification to blame multi-stream education as the cause of national disunity? Politicizing this grave issue or finding simplistic reasons for it will not help us resolve one of the primary deterrent to nation building. National unity became an issue after the 80s when the cry of ‘supremisy or ketuanan’ became the national philosophy dividing the people right down the middle. The pm needs to take a bold stand if he is serious about uniting the people. For a start the identification of political parties by race or religion must end. The colonial legacy of divide and rule and identifying the people by race and religion must cease. Enforcing the rule of law and equality among the masses must take precedence. Public institutions funded by taxpayers must portray a Malaysian philosophy and outlook. Yes, in our present political environment finding scapegoats for national disunity is akin to spitting at the sky. It will come back an fall on our faces.

    Posted 6 years ago by Nakeeran ponniah · Reply

  • Correct! Correct! Correct!

    Posted 6 years ago by HC Lung · Reply