English is important, Idris Jala
Does Idris really believe that all the knowledge we have and need is available in Bahasa Malaysia? If he does, then he is in denial or perhaps he is very much ill-informed.
By Erna Mahyuni (TMI)
I am used to idiocy in the news. Parliament seems to produce little else these days. Yet when I read Idris Jala’s pronouncement that Malaysia did not need English proficiency to succeed, I felt like presenting him with a copy of a thick, hardcover dictionary.
Right after I was done hitting him on the head with it.
English matters. It is still the language used by the most influential media bodies. Idris should try visiting Korea, Japan and China sometime and see how much demand there is for English classes.
Remember our Look East policy. Our brethren are making the effort to learn English, so why aren’t we?
Follow the leaders
Silicon Valley is once again thriving. Where the Internet is concerned, the most exciting things happening are going on over in the Western world. Look at the average programming language. C, Java, Perl, PHP all use terms native to the English language.
If we were to rely merely on the books written or translated into the Malay language, then we would be severely deprived. The most influential texts are in English. Most of the required reading for most courses in most universities are written in English.
Does Idris really believe that all the knowledge we have and need is available in Bahasa Malaysia? If he does, then he is in denial or perhaps he is very much ill-informed.
Impressions count
If Idris Jala had his way, perhaps we would all be speaking English like Ibrahim Ali. The latter’s stammering, painful broken English was broadcast around the world and made him look like a joke.
Read more at: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/opinion/article/english-is-important-idris-jala/
