The Call To End Vernacular Schools Umno Is At It Again

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UMNO is back at it again, only this time, for the umpteenth time, using age-old racially charged suggestions, to drive their agenda of Malay nationalism, or in this case, shroud the answer to the dilemma of fostering national unity with solutions that only aggravate, rather than address.
In a recent article published by Malaysiakini, UMNO Youth exco Wan Zuhir Ghazali said that closing SJKC and SJKT schools would be better for unity than inclusive history.
Wan Zuhir said this in response to Kota Melaka MP Khoo Poay Tiong’s earlier proposal that primary school history textbooks should include the history of all races in Malaysia, adding that this would help with fostering national unity from a young age.
Responding to Khoo, Wan Zuhir said it would be better to close vernacular schools to foster unity instead of teaching the history of all Malaysian races to school children.
Wan Zuhir Ghazali (Image: UMNO Online)Now here is where you lost me, Wan Zuhir!
The problem here is clear, UMNO has always used vernacular schools as means of sounding pro-Malay despite their own party members enrolling their kids into foreign universities and private vernacular schools.
Learning about our mixed heritage is a great way to appreciate the contributions of each community to Malaysia ultimately fostering respect between communities. However, it is unfortunate that Wan Zuhir’s response revealed the truth behind the charade.
Perception is a powerful tool to govern. If we believe that we are different, if we believe that one community is out to get the other, if we believe that each community in Malaysia is only out for themselves, that works perfectly for the ruling class.
Wan Zuhir’s suggestion of removing vernacular schools is nothing more than a smokescreen. He knows it, we know it.
The intention here isn’t to discuss Khoo’s proposal. Seeing how sensitive the issue of closing vernacular schools are, saying such things would only fuel the fire of discontent, creating thick clouds of dark smoke that block out reason and rationale and eventually sweeping the solution—inclusive history—under the rug, out of sight and ultimately forgotten.
From a pragmatic standpoint, the suggestion to ban vernacular schools is both absurd and would never happen. Not to mention it isn’t the solution, considering that vernacular schools, particularly Chinese schools, house over 20% non-ethnic Chinese students in 2024, a rise from 12% in 2023.
Secondly, no ruling government is going to do it simply because there is no political will to see it through. And I don’t blame them!
Imagine if the Education Ministry decides to put an end to vernacular schools—what would that do? All Chinese and Indian parties would criticise the move or risk the chance of being viewed as not upholding the rights of the communities they represent.
What would that do to the Madani government’s approval ratings? Or any ruling government for that matter?
Not only is it a nightmare on the political side but it would also be fiscal headache as well. Would new schools need to be built?
(Image: Malaysiakini)What would adding students to current schools do to the overall quality of education imparted in classrooms? Classrooms that are already over capacity now have to be made larger to make room.
From the perspective of the students, how would this impact their education journey? Would they have to spend an extra year brushing up on their Malay in order to stand a chance in the government schools?
How about the private businesses that invested in those vernacular schools? What do they get? Would they be compensated for the closure of their schools?
Does Wan Zuhir have the answers to these questions?
Considering how vernacular schools are becoming more mixed than ever, students at vernacular schools are mingling among other races, and parents are opting to send their kids to vernacular schools because of the quality of education.
So if national unity is on Wan Zuhir’s mind, perhaps he should be focusing on increasing the standards of education at public schools.
This would be the attraction for parents to enrol their kids, and voilà, problem solved—you get national unity and good quality education at the same time!
Vinodh Rajendran is the founder of the GoodCast Show Podcast.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT. 
- Focus Malaysia.

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