Translation from Malay by CPI
Picture courtesy of Merdeka Review
‘PM advises rakyat to learn Mandarin’ was one of the news headlines in the Press reports on Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s attendance at the 90th anniversary dinner of the Chong Hwa independent secondary school in Kuala Lumpur on 14 December.
In the context of our contemporary society, Najib’s statement is nothing unexpected given Mandarin’s rise as an important language globally. This routine advice might evoke misgivings only within certain segments of the Malay community that have been perplexed by the [flip-flop] language policies being put forward by the Barisan Nasional government.
Nonetheless from the point of view of the Chinese community, the focus is not what is said by Najib but what is done by him. Before rushing off to Parliament to cast his vote on his administration’s inaugural budget, the PM managed some 30 minutes with the Chong Hwa gathering – delivering a speech which merely served to burst any bubble of hope previously harboured by the Chinese community.
Chinese medium schools
What has been going on behind the scenes is actually more interesting than what has been given coverage by mainstream media. This issue of schools needs to be understood within the context of Malaysian society, and the Chinese community in particular, in order for us to understand how Najib’s maiden visit – the first ever to be made by a sitting Malaysian PM – to an independent secondary school was invested with such high hopes. With the hope dashed, it is only natural that criticisms should then rain on Najib.
Chinese schools have been a bone of contention in domestic politics since early on. The Chinese education cause is one shared by all the political parties relying on Chinese community support, whether from the establishment side or Opposition. Thus any challenge to the position of vernacular schools will touch a nerve with the Chinese, especially organizations like Dong Jiao Zong.
For a long time now, the Chinese community has been dissatisfied with the unfair allocation of resources (disproportionate in ratio) to the Chinese education stream. The number of Chinese primary schools has not increased even though there is a great demand for them whereas Chinese independent secondary schools are isolated from the national education system. Furthermore, qualification obtained from these independent schools [the Unified Examination Certificate or UEC equivalent to SPM] is not recognised by Malaysian authorities even though it is accepted by renowned universities in other parts of the world.
After the political tsunami ...
Following the outcome of the March 8, 2008 general election, there was a change in our scenario of ‘old politics’. The Pakatan Rakyat state governments had begun promoting a more open policy towards Chinese-medium schools and allocated funding and even land for the SRJKs (sekolah rendah jenis kebangsaan) and independent secondary schools.
This changed circumstance forced the hand of BN to likewise follow, for example in their announcement of RM1 million to SRJK (C) Sin Min during the Bukit Gantang by-election campaign. When BN lost that by-election, however, Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin grumbled that Chinese voters “seem ungrateful despite what we (Barisan) have done???.
Muhyiddn’s statement which appeared in a Mingguan Malaysia [Utusan’s Sunday publication] interview drew much flak from the Chinese community. Umno, and Najib, are increasingly aware that they are required to tread ‘the middle ground’ in line with the present turn of Malaysian race politics. Therefore, ever since Najib took over the helm, his ‘1Malaysia’ slogan has been studiously bandied about under the reform umbrella.
To keep Umno-BN in power, Najib has to endear himself to the non-Malays and non-Muslims. The need for such an approach has become pressing at this juncture due to the two communal party components of the ruling coalition – MCA and MIC – being mired in internal crisis. Hence Najib’s visit to Chong Hwa independent secondary school is read as an attempt on his own steam to woo a returned support of the non-Malays.
Buoyed by high hopes
Najib Abdul Razak’s anticipated presence at Chong Hwa was widely publicized by the Chinese associations and print media. Sin Chew Daily, for example, highlighted on Dec 14 Najib’s comment that “Chinese independent secondary schools are an important national asset??? that has given birth to unique talents.
Going even further, Sin Chew Daily splashed on its front page a preview photograph of the Chong Hwa building which had already put up a banner to welcome Najib’s arrival. The school’s 90th anniversary dinner with an expected turnout of 10,000 people was a celebration themed specially to cater for Najib’s ‘1Malaysia’ promotion blitz.
In the light of this situation, the hopes of the Chinese community naturally soared. Everyone expected some goodies of the PM, whether in the form of ‘sweets’ or an announcement of a new policy on Chinese independent secondary schools. Their expectations peaked when Pakatan parliamentarians Teo Nie Ching and Lee Boon Chye dared the PM to recognise the UEC.
Coming under criticism
The patently false hope was shattered after Najib concluded his 30-minute dinner speech. There were no significant policy announcements on Chinese education or even any ‘crumbs’ thrown.
Najib expounded at length on his track record of amending the Education Act 1996 to safeguard the position of the Chinese education stream when he was Education Minister. The PM also took the opportunity to elaborate on his ‘1Malaysia’ concept before dashing off to Parliament to ‘save’ his Budget 2010 [CPI editor’s note: The budget was passed by a narrow 66-63 margin due to some BN lawmakers being missing from the House sitting].
There was no money allocated. This denial of funds was a slap in the face to the Chinese leaders who had earlier tried to paint a ‘feel good’ picture. Caught on the backfoot by the media, the red-faced Chinese leaders had to mitigate the general disappointment by explaining that Najib has promised to consider alienating land for the Chinese independent secondary schools.
In truth though, the Chinese print media which had initially floated the buoyant hopes eventually failed to report on Najib’s damp squib in the aftermath. It fell to the Internet websites to articulate the Chinese disappointment overall. Aside from a statement by Lim Kit Siang who had a dig at Najib’s KPI and failure to carry out his promises, local political analysts also took the PM to task for not walking his talk.
In form but not substance
Political analyst Phoon Wing Keong when interviewed by Malaysiakini had questioned Najib’s sincerity in recognizing Chinese independent secondary schools. To Phoon, Najib is merely acknowledging the existence of these schools but not committing in the form of any substantive legislation. Phoon holds that Najib should allot resources to help Chinese independent secondary schools and not just pay lip service.
It is clear that empty words have failed to convince the electorate. Voters today have awakened and are able to distinguish between sweet talk and concrete measures. The slew of criticisms against Najib has also redounded on the Chinese community leaders who organized the Chong Hwa function.
There has been some finger-pointing at these leaders that are seen as being overly ‘worshipful’ of Najib and bordering on sycophancy. These Chinese leaders had presented a platform for Najib to engage in electioneering, in the hope of some pork-barrels rolling the way of Chinese schools. Their action is viewed as unrealistic, and true to form, Najib ultimately said nothing of real import.
In the final analysis, Najib may himself have felt that he successfully made some sort of impact premised on the riotous applause greeting him that evening. It is however a hollow ‘victory’ similar to the misleadingly optimistic impression that Najib had given the Chinese community before. That is, if one cares to take into account the less than laudatory response in the Internet to his overture.
Lim Hong Siang is editor of the MerdekaReview news portal, Malay edition. This article was originally published in MerdekaReview on Dec 16, 2009.
