WHILE attending my sister’s Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) graduation in Kuala Lumpur on Nov 8, I noticed that the ceremony was conducted in English and Chinese.

The graduates were Malaysians, though: Chinese, Malays and Indians. The top three prize winners were a Chinese, a Malay and an Indian. Yet, there was little use of the national language at this ceremony.

I find it hard to understand that the ACCA Malaysia Advisory Committee found this state of affairs acceptable. This smacks of arrogance on the part of the organisers and does not contribute to the Malaysianisation of Malaysia.

The only Bahasa Malaysia words uttered were by the only non-Malaysian attending the event, ACCA president Richard Aitken-Davies, who said “Selamat datang” and “selamat pagi”.

Why was the national language given second-class treatment at this event? Do the people behind ACCA Malaysia have no national pride?

S.A.P., Petaling Jaya

Source: NST – November 14, 2008