Too often, we allow political considerations to over-ride rationality. The back-peddling of reverting the teaching of English and Mathematics back to Bahasa Malaysia recently is the unkindest cut of them all.
Anyway, for whatever it is worth, let us read this on-line news report extolling the merit of learning English.
" Malaysians, including civil servants, must be proficient in English to seize opportunities for future economic survival, said chief secretary to the government Tan Sri Sidek Hassan.
Mastering the language was vital because China, an emerging economic power, was predicted to be the world’s number one English speaking country within 10 years, he said.
“As English will remain the global lingua franca for centuries to come, we must emphasise proficiency for communication, negotiation and articulation purposes.
“For example, proficiency in English is vital when negotiating FTA (Free Trade Agreement),’’ he said.
Sidek said this after presenting a keynote address at the 11th National Human Resources Summit at a hotel in Bandar Sunway Thursday.
He also stressed that mastering English would not make a person less patriotic.
“In fact, we will be more patriotic if we can master English and use it to get the best deal for our country,’’ he said, noting that a survey in India showed that 100% of its college graduates could speak English.
Earlier in his keynote address on “Building empowered organisations: A Case for Malaysia”, Sidek said students must be prepared for jobs and technologies that have yet to emerge.
“We need to think 27th Century, today,’’ he said.
He also said that equality and equitability were crucial in creating empowered society, empowered organisation and empowered individuals.
“The government subscribes to the economics of ethics and fairness,’’ he said, adding that under 1Malaysia no one would be left out or sidelines due to exterior merits.
Sidek also noted that only 26% of the 10.6 million working population serve in professional and managerial capacity.
Comparatively, professionals make up between 35 and 50% of the working population in developed countries, he said.
“Only 80% of our workforce are educated up to upper secondary level,’’ he said.
The private sector could play a role in helping Malaysia transform into a high-income economy, he said.
He said public and private sectors, media and civil societies should not be drawn into “silo” agendas that abandon the country’s destiny in the global arena.
“We need trend setters who dare make bold changes to set new standards and break new grounds,’’ he said."
Well said, but where is the beef?
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