Abolish vernacular schools to reduce racial divide, says Dr M

August 31, 2023

Abolish vernacular schools to reduce racial divide, says Dr M

PETALING JAYA: Dr Mahathir Mohamad has called for vernacular schools to be shut down, describing it as the best way to reduce the racial divide.

Mahathir has been critical of the vernacular school system in the past, claiming that it has divided the country.

“One of the best ways to close the racial divide is through education, and among (the measures that can be taken is) abolishing vernacular schools,” Utusan Malaysia quoted the former prime minister as saying.

He also claimed there were “certain races” who refused to enrol their children in national schools as they were akin to religious schools.

However, he said, even if the situation improved in national schools, minorities would still avoid enrolling their children in them.

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Mahathir, who has been harping on race-related issues of late, went on to claim that the “ethnic pendatang” did not want to mix with Malay students.

“They want to preserve their customs and culture, which includes their mother tongue, just like how it is in their motherland.”

He said in countries such as the US, UK and Australia, immigrants were accorded citizenship if they were proficient in English and embraced local culture.

“Take UK’s prime minister Rishi Sunak, for example, who is of Indian descent but speaks English that is indistinguishable from the locals.”

Mahathir is not alone in calling for the abolishment of vernacular education as his son, Mukhriz, had made a similar call back in March.

Mukhriz had said then that Malaysia must eliminate factors that divided the people, such as having vernacular schools, before the possibility of having a non-Malay becoming prime minister could be entertained.

Last year, a High Court in Kota Bharu ruled that vernacular schools were constitutional.