KKB BY-ELECTION | DAP vice-chairperson Teresa Kok has thrown down a vernacular education gauntlet to Perikatan Nasional chairperson and Bersatu president Muhyiddin Yassin.
The challenge comes in the wake of PAS information chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari honing in on the coalition government’s candidate for the Kuala Kubu Baharu by-election Pang Sock Tao’s vernacular education background.
Kok told Malaysiakini that the ball is now in Muhyiddin’s court.
“Over to you, Muhyiddin – declare that Bersatu and PN are not against vernacular education and will not support any attempt to dismantle it,” she said.
The Seputeh MP also pointed out that she posed the same question to the PN candidate from Bersatu, Khairul Azhari Saut, but his lips remain sealed to date.
“This is crucial because in August 2020, the then deputy minister for youth and sports and Bersatu Youth chief Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal stated that vernacular schools should be abolished.
“In November 2020, he denied advocating for their abolition and instead called for the nationalisation of students.
“In November 2021, he was pressed in Parliament regarding vernacular schools yet again and he evaded by stating his intention was to strengthen the use of the Malay language in these schools,” she added.
‘Silence not an option’
Kok also recalled that in 2013, Muhyiddin, who was the education minister then, had guaranteed that vernacular schools would stay.
However, she pointed out that the former premier has remained silent on the matter, even as calls for their abolition were made by his own party’s youth chief.
Teresa said it is regrettable that after decades of independence, certain politicians continue to exploit vernacular education to divide Malaysians without remorse.
“As president of Bersatu and chairperson of PN, I urge Muhyiddin to declare his stand, his party’s stand, and PN’s stand on vernacular education, affirming that PN will not support nor endorse any attempts to dismantle it.
“I wish to remind Muhyiddin of his statement on April 2, 2021, that PN values societal inclusiveness and interests of all races and religions.
“I further challenge Muhyiddin to make a public stand on whether he endorses and supports the PAS information chief’s recent provocative and racist statement on Pang’s vernacular Chinese educational background. Silence is not an option,” she added.
In a social media post yesterday, Fadhli claimed that he is not against vernacular schools but questioned the DAP candidate’s reasons for not listing this information in her profile from the beginning.
He inferred that this information could have been deliberately concealed due to concerns that it might affect votes.
“I am not anti-vernacular schools. That is not the issue. The issue is why was there an attempt to hide the ‘vernacular’ factor?” he added.