Last week, Umno Vice President Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein announced that topics expected to dominate upcoming Umno General Assembly include single-stream schools versus vernacular schools and the role of government-linked companies in strengthening the Bumiputera economy.
Amid recent insensitive and even seditious calls by Umno divisional leaders to discuss abolition of vernacular schools at Umno Assembly, the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib has subsequently responded at the MCA General Assembly held on October 12 by assuring the Chinese community that they need not worry about the future of vernacular schools as their rights were enshrined in the Federal Constitution
The Deputy Prime Minister cum Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin also said in Parliament on Nov 3 that the government is firm in its stand that vernacular schools are part of the nation’s legacy.
So what is it that Umno Assembly wishes to achieve by making vernacular schools a main debate topic and in the context of single stream versus vernacular school?
Is it a tactic to try to blame the vernacular schools for the government’s failed policies to bring about genuine national unity or for BN’s unsatisfactory electoral performance in the last two general elections?
If Umno members are keen and concerned about issues of primary school education, they can always discuss rationally why national schools have failed to become the main choice of parents or why, as recently highlighted by former Prime Minister, that more and more Umno ministers and leaders are sending their children to private or international schools, whether local or foreign.
Umno delegates should question who are the ministers and leaders who have no confidence in our national schools.
DAP MP for Petaling Jaya Utara Tony Pua has recently questioned the various financial controversies and scandals in MDB and expressed his worry that they will make it the single biggest financial scandal in Malaysian history.
Mahathir himself has also in September raised questions about the heavy debt and usage of funds at 1MDB.
Among the issues raised by him were that:-
- 1MDB has paid above market prices in their purchase of power plants from Genting and Ananda Krishnan,
- it has a debt of around RM38 billion after just five years in operation
- that the money for 1MDB is not from the country’s surpluses but billions of ringgit of debt that has added to the already high national debt
- the government will not have the ability to help pay the 1MDB debt as it is already facing a deficit budget problem
The issues related to 1 MDB are very serious issues which Umno delegates should be bold to take up the issues in their debates.