From DAP http://www.malaysia.net/dap

The Unified Examination Cert. fiasco

By Lim Kit Siang

The fiasco of the Education Ministry’s position on Unified Examination (UE) Certificate is typical of Barisan Nasional’s "two steps backward, one step forward" attitude towards mother-tongue education when what is needed in the new millennium is "two-step forward, no step backward" strategy.

Yesterday, the Education Minister Musa Mohamad announced that the Cabinet had reversed his ministry's decision made last June that barred private universities and colleges from recognising the Chinese Independent High School Unified Examination (UE) Certificate.

A day earlier, the Chinese education movement Dong Jiao Zhong had disclosed that the Education Ministry in June last year had issued a directive to government and private colleges on this ban as well as requiring them to insert in their recruitment advertisements to change a previous clause of "or similar qualifications" to "qualifications accepted by the Malaysian government".

It is unbelievable that the MCA leadership, which traditionally has a MCA Deputy Minister, is unaware of such a Education Ministry directive, which only goes to prove their impotence, as further illustrated by the recent controversy over the undemocratic and arbitrary ban of a Chinese New Year exhibition by the Universiti Technology Malaysia authorities.

There is no doubt that if not for the Sanggang by-election, there would not have been such a swift reaction by the Cabinet on this issue. UMNO leaders are so worried about the outcome of the Sanggang by-election that for the first time in UMNO history, the Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is personally leading the by-election campaign - making almost daily visits to the constituency and at times camping in Sanggang.

However, the United Examination Certificate issue has not been fully resolved. Barisan Nasional leaders are prepared to praise sky-high Chinese primary schools and Chinese independent secondary schools just to woo Chinese votes, but the government has never been prepared to change its policy to fully integrate Chinese education into the mainstream of national education policy.

Let the Barisan Nasional government demonstrate its sincerity on mother-tongue education policy by announcing before Sanggang polling on Saturday the following:

Recognize the Unified Examination Certificate as one of the academic qualifications for entry into national higher learning institutions, public service and teaching academies.

Government approval as well as financial assistance for the establishment of a Pahang Chinese Independent Secondary School.

Increase the number of Chinese and Tamil primary schools in areas densely-populated by Chinese or Indians, in order to ensure the right of the students to receive mother-tongue education.

Assist Malaysian Independent Chinese Secondary Schools in financing, teacher training, curricula design, establishment, amenitieis, etc and to allow them to relocate, set up branches and put up new premises;

Allow Chinese as one of the major media of teaching in local institutions of higher education like English.

Arrange Pupil’s Own Language (POL) classes within normal school curriculum as long as there are five pupils of any ethnic community in any schools and ensure that these classes start at the beginning of the year.