Gift of the gab

THERE is a strong push to make Bahasa Malaysia (BM) the second official language of Asean.

A BM language development steering committee for higher education institutions (HEIs) has been mooted by the Higher Education Ministry following Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s recent call for the government to use BM at international events.

Nineteen universities in Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines have been identified as potential collaborators for research, BM development, and translation and adaptation programmes with local HEIs.

It is only right that we take pride and promote our national language, but there must be equal emphasis on improving English proficiency among students while encouraging them to pick up as many languages as possible.

Bilingualism and multilingualism have become a common phenomenon across the world and in some societies, they are the norm.

As industries and economies grow, the ability to speak several languages is appreciated as an advantageous skill to possess.

According to American language learning app Preply, about 17% of the world’s population today are multilingual and another 43% are bilingual.

National Association of Private Educational Institutions (Napei) secretary-general Dr Teh Choon Jin said the Prime Minister’s call to speak the national language is understandable as there are world leaders who continue to use their own languages in the international arena.

“Nonetheless, Malaysians must ensure that they are proficient in English as most research and publications are in the language,” he said, adding that the ability of Malaysians to speak several languages and dialects in addition to English and BM is an asset.

While agreeing to this, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Institute of Malay World and Civilisation (ATMA) director Prof Datuk Seri Dr Awang Sariyan stressed that efforts in uplifting the status and role of the national language do not negate the importance of mastering other languages.

Efforts to promote both, he said, could be done simultaneously. — By SANDHYA MENON