YOURSAY | Wait, didn't Ismail Sabri say MRSM for Malays only?

YOURSAY | 'His 'Malaysian Family' feels like just another empty slogan.'

Govt reverses 'national school only' condition to enter MRSM

Opposition slams MRSM's new 'national schools-only' requirement

PDev Anand Pillai: The Mara Junior Science Colleges (MRSM) were built for the Malays with taxpayers’ monies. That is a known fact.

What are the non-Malay students going to do there? They are not welcomed. Indeed, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s "Keluarga Malaysia" (Malaysian Family) concept feels like just another empty slogan.

First and foremost, we need meritocracy in education for the sake of creating and encouraging thinking and intelligence among our young.

Ismail Sabri may reverse his position on MRSM, but the Malay masses, in general, may not agree with him, and the civil service is predominantly Malay.

So, just like the previous Pakatan Harapan government, which was sabotaged by a mutinous civil service, the same can be done to the current government.

OCT: There is nothing the non-Malays can do. On one hand, the government is asking for unity while on the other hand, it is implementing divisive policies.

Most of the good schools cater for the Malays. So are the scholarships. The government doesn’t want to know that without good human assets, Malaysia will not progress.

All the non-Malays with intelligence will endure and pursue knowledge through other means even with obstacles from the government.

Look at the non-Malays who emigrated or are staying overseas. They are valued and honoured in the countries they have taken up residence. Malaysia has scientists, doctors, lecturers, politicians, inventors and many other professionals who are doing Malaysia proud but not in Malaysia.

It is wrong to have discriminating policies and suppress the minority to cater for the majority. One day, it will collapse. Discrimination has gone too far and deep.

Education helps to build up human assets. The government cannot always bend the rules to favour one race. This is not the right approach. The government should encourage competition so that it can bring out the best among us.

Akmal Ariffin: The segregation in education can never do any good to the country. Only with competition will the Malay students improve and be on par with the job market.

I remember my Malay professors, who are very much wanting. It doesn't mean that all non-Malay professors are better, but we are denying our kids the best teachers.

Politicians don't care. They only want to win the Malay votes. Unfortunately, currently, we are ruled by them.

Milshah: Well, in my opinion, I think it was a good move for MRSM to impose the national schools only requirement. It forces everyone to go to national schools.

There are so many types of schools in Malaysia. For example, if one were to go to primary and secondary vernacular schools, one will subsequently go to private colleges and universities.

That means from the age of seven to 23, one would be exposed to only a particular race. Then if the graduate works, only then the graduate will mingle with the other races. This is race polarisation and it’s wrong. No wonder Bangsa Malaysia failed.

We need a national school for all. It's time all races learn under one national educational system. Only then they will grow up race-blind. Only then they don't see themselves as Malays, Chinese, Indians or other races but as Malaysians.

Anon25: We are missing the big picture. Let me explain. Ultra-nationalism and religious zeal caused the newly independent Malaysia to force all children to learn Bahasa Malaysia.

So, a very good education system with English as the medium of instruction up to university level was suddenly changed to BM. Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad even created Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and the International Islamic University.

This gave a sudden boost to Malays and religious school-educated Malays. These people began to populate the civil service and they maintain this hegemony everywhere.

What was the reaction of the MCA and MIC? They clamoured for better funding for Tamil and Chinese schools. Nobody, not even the DAP and former opposition leader Tan Chee Khoon, spoke up for our great English schools. This reaction fitted in with the Malay grand design.

But with globalisation and the transition of our economy from an agricultural to an industrial one, the need for an English education became evident. They could sense how Singapore was advancing rapidly locally and internationally.

It was embarrassing when the head of a trade mission in the Malaysian Embassy in the US could barely speak English in a trade presentation to the US business community in New York. When Mahathir, who was there, was asked why an English-speaking officer was not sent, the answer was that there was none.

It was then that the Malay politicians realised the importance of English schools. But by then, it seemed too late to turn the clock back because the Malay chauvinists and religious ultras would not let them do that.

Hence, the idea of Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) (where the medium of instruction is English). At least, this became an avenue to pick bright Malay students, who would man the future civil and diplomatic services.

These schools would recruit the best teachers, of any race, and pay them more. Malay-speaking graduates would still be employed and promoted to be the bosses.

Anonymous 289367464: There was a viral video showing Ismail Sabri giving a speech at an anti-International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (Icerd) rally in 2018 claiming that MRSM was for Malays only.

He lamented how the then Harapan government was trying to get more Indian students into MRSM.

"In the past, MRSM was for Malays. Now because the (then) deputy (rural development) minister (Sivarasa Rasiah) is not a Malay, he is doing campaigns at Tamil schools and such to get more Indian children into MRSM," he said.

This is the kind of dog-whistle politics that was, and still is, being promoted by Ismail Sabri and his ilk. Don’t expect them to change, because it works – they’re now back in power. 

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