Putrajaya Rejects Application To Open Malaysia's First Tamil Secondary School

This was revealed in a letter from the Education Ministry dated Jan 8 this year to Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng after questions arose when the ministry turned down a request for such a school to be built in the state.

thesundaily.my

The request for a sole Tamil secondary school to be established in Penang was rejected as the Education Act 1996 only provides for national secondary schools (SMK) to be set up.

malaysiandigest.com

Last year, Lim sent three letters to Muhyiddin on the matter and offered land in Butterworth to set up the school.

malaysiandigest.com

Lim said he wrote to the ministry last year about the application several times, explaining that a Tamil secondary school will cater to the education needs of the Indian community in Bagan Dalam, which makes up 24% of the total constituents, but the state never received feedback until Khair's letter.

malaysia-chronicle.com

He said Deputy Education Minister P. Kamalanathan was not telling the truth when he reportedly denied receiving any letters about the application from the Penang government. "He said there were no letters from Penang, but then the education department has actually sent us a reply. Kamalanathan should not lie," he added.

malaysia-chronicle.com

The state was informed via a letter dated January 8 from Education Department director-general Datuk Dr Khair Mohamad Yusof that there are no provision under the Education Act 1996 for the setting up Tamil secondary schools.

themalaysianinsider.com

The letter also stated that the Education Act only provided for the establishment of Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) — where the medium of instruction is in Bahasa Malaysia — to support the educational needs of all races in the country.

Asked what other options the state has in pursuing the matter further apart from going to Muhyiddin or Najib, Lim said the state cannot do much as the setting up of the school, even as a private institution, would require a license from Putrajaya. "We also would not have the funds," said Lim, who is the Bagan MP.

themalaysianinsider.com

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state's sincere offer to set aside a piece of land for the building of the school was not considered by Putrajaya or Barisan Nasional Indian-based party, MIC. "We are only asking for one Tamil secondary school in the whole country. It will not jeopardise anyone. "One Tamil secondary school is not excessive. We would not be able to sustain more than one anyway," he told a press conference at his Komtar office today.

msn.com

Penang Chief
Minister Lim Guan Eng hopes to enlist Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s aid directly to set up the country’s first Tamil secondary school after the Education Ministry rejected its bid, citing a lack of provision under existing laws.

"We are only asking for one Tamil secondary school which was not excessive and it will be the sole school of its type in the entire country. I will be appealing to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak if the appeal to the Education Minister is not successful," he said.

thesundaily.my

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister II Dr P. Ramasamy, who is also state education exco, said the state had even appealed to BN parties to put politics aside and give their support for the setting up the school.

However, he said even the Indian-based parties did not voice their support and it was the Chinese educationist group Dong Zong that backed the state's proposal instead.

themalaysianinsider.com

"I think the federal government fears that this will set a precedent and other places may request for Tamil secondary schools too," he said.

To this, Lim quipped: "No. I think if we have it in Penang, then they can forget about Penang."

themalaysianinsider.com

The issue has been a long standing one among the Indian community with the Penang MIC requesting one while the PHA had organised a 10,000 signature petition in support for such a school.

malaysiandigest.com

The latest development has not gone down well with the community with the Penang Hindu Association (PHA) urging Indian MPs to form a non-partisan parliamentary caucus to lobby for the matter.

thesundaily.my

Tamil education in Malaysia started when first Tamil primary school was established in Penang in 1816. As the rubber estates grew up in numbers by the end of the nineteenth century, the estate managements and the British government opened more Tamil primary schools. In addition, Christian missionaries in Malaya set up schools as a mean to proselytizing Christianity. By 1905, there were 13 government and Christian mission Tamil schools in Malaya.

wikipedia.org

Like other schools, Tamil school also follows the national syllabii and all rules and regulations stipulated by the Malaysian Education Ministry.

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After six years of primary education, the Tamil school students are integrated in the secondary schools. There, they learn everything in languages, other than Tamil.

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Normally, parents send their children to schools which they find more comfortable for both themselves and their children. More than 50 % of the Indian parents feel very comfortable with Tamil schools, and therefore send their children there. Others feel national school is more comfortable.

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We cannot deny that Tamil schools safeguard our culture and language. It is also a place for Tamil speaking children to learn about their own culture and values thus enhancing their skills in learning. Even the UNESCO reports say that medium of instruction at the primary level should be in the child‘s mother tongue as it plays an important role in enhancing the child’s potential.

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