TwoSen

I SAT the Literature in English paper in the Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia examination last year.

This subject is not popular in schools in Malaysia. I obtained a C+ in this paper.

My parents had to hunt for a tutor and pay a big fee so that I could take this subject.

I was given to understand that only 50 to 70 candidates took this paper.

One of the criteria to apply for the TESL (Teaching of English as a Second Language) course is a credit in the STPM Literature in English paper.

I was called for a suitability test last month but not called for an interview held a few days ago in Batu Pahat.

One of my neighbours who went for the interview mentioned that only seven Chinese and Indian candidates were called.

The interviewers were of one ethnic group and were abrupt in their questions and spoke in Bahasa Malaysia 90 per cent of the time.

The final question was on current events and my friend was told to answer in English. The interviewers stared at him blankly when he responded in fluent English.

Minister of Education Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein has stressed on the need to improve English in all schools.

He may not be aware of how candidates for the TESL course are being selected.

Many of those at the interview only obtained a credit in English at the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia level.

Some of them were not even able to converse fluently in English when my friend spoke to them.

They spoke “Manglish”.

I would like the authorities to investigate and make public the criteria for candidates who apply for the TESL course.

I am waiting anxiously for a place in the TESL course as I have the qualifications.

Please be fair and let meritocracy survive.

R.T., Batu Pahat

Source: NST – May 20, 2008

AFTER a six-month break from school, my son eagerly went to SMK Telok Datok on May 12 to register for enrolment into Form Six.

But his first day was a disappointment as he was immediately given leave from school until June 10. School reopens only after the semester holidays. Even before the start of school, the students have been given a holiday!

My son has registered for a science programme. I believe it is going to be a challenging programme. So the decision of the school authorities to give the students leave simply doesn’t make sense.

When my son returns to school after the holidays, he will have one week of orientation. With time taken for tests and the final-year exam, he will only have about three months of classes this year.

When he is in Upper Six next year, he will have about eight months of classes. The question is, how are the students going to complete in 11 months a programme that has been designed for two years?

The teacher who registered them explained that the teachers were busy with mid-year exams. As a result, they had nobody to supervise them. But, what about the teachers who are going to teach Form Six classes? Are they on leave, too?

It is sad that the school authorities are very cool about the whole issue. I am sure the time-table is also not ready. Probably this is one of the reasons why many science students are performing badly in exams.

I hope the Ministry of Education will look into this problem.

M., Banting

Source: NST – May 20, 2008

THE Royal Commission of Inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the Lingam video clip affair has done a credible job, much better than expected.

When the names of the commissioners were first announced, no one believed that they would be up to the job.

The sceptics, this writer included, have been proved wrong because the commission has demonstrated beyond any doubt its capacity to carry out its difficult task without fear or favour. The result is a professional report.

The government, too, can take credit for its moral courage in agreeing to a commission being set up in the first place to get to the bottom of allegations of impropriety by high-profile individuals, all pillars of the establishment.

I could not imagine a commission of inquiry, such as we have just had, being allowed during the Dr Mahathir era.

Now that we have come this far, we should allow our criminal justice system to proceed without interference from any quarter.

However, given the fact that important sections of the public, for some reason or other, show a markedly ambivalent attitude towards the attorney-general, he should consider asking the government to appoint independent prosecutors to deal with the matter in hand.

Some changes to the law may be necessary to effect this arrangement, but it will be worth the effort in terms of the credibility accruing to the government as a whole.

It is important for the government not to fritter away what little public confidence it enjoys.

To defy public sentiments on the issue of justice, as exemplified by the Lingam case, is to fly in the face of reason.

In this, as in other cases, justice must not only be done, it must be seen to be done.

TUNKU ABDUL AZIZ, Kuala Lumpur

Source: NST – May 20, 2008

AFTER reading your report in the “Heroes in Blue” series (NST, May 17), I wondered: what about remembering those heroes of yesteryear who were unfortunate enough to have names that don’t sound Malaysian but were just as Malaysian as the next man?

For example, my father.

His name was Lt-Col (R) Malcolm Alexander Campbell. He had one of the most un-Malaysian names you can find but was one of the most patriotic Malaysians I have ever had the good fortune to know.

In fact, he never once said a bad thing about his beloved country and never allowed anyone else to badmouth his country.

He was born in Malaysia just like both his parents before him. In fact, his family has been in Malaysia for about 100 years.

He joined the army and served his country with distinction and bravery. He served in the Congo and was one of the heroes in Malaysia’s struggle against the communist insurgents. He had many medals to prove it, including the K.M.N.

He was a leader who was respected and admired by all who served with and under him. We keep meeting people who still remember him fondly.

ELEANOR A. CAMPBELL, Cheras, Kuala Lumpur

Source: NST – May 20, 2008

PENANG Island is now clogged with traffic, resulting in either traffic coming to a standstill or, at best, reduced to a crawl. The contributory factor is the total lack of enforcement of traffic rules by the police and other enforcement agencies.

Vehicles are parked on yellow lines and at “no parking” areas, as the drivers know that no action will be taken. Every day, cars can be seen parked along Jalan Burmah, right outside the Pulau Tikus police station. The authorities seem to be turning a blind eye.

The situation is the same all over Pulau Tikus right up to Gurney Drive. Along the row of coffee shops after the Gurney Hotel, cars are parked right up to road junctions. At the Gurney Plaza, taxis are double-parked, reducing the two-lane traffic flow and contributing to another bottle neck.

At the back entrance of Gurney Plaza from Jalan Kelawei, there is another mess caused by cars turning into the plaza. The Gurney Drive roundabout must be the only one in the country where cars and tour buses can park with impunity.

Every day, during lunch and after work, there is a traffic jam starting from the Citibank in Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah right up to Hotel 1926 in Jalan Burmah. This is once again largely due to vehicles being parked illegally along Jalan Burmah, especially at the SMJK Union Institution, where food stalls and push carts also contribute to the chaos along the road.

At Jalan Tanjung Tokong Lama, a lane meant for vehicles turning left into Jalan Tanjung Tokong is blocked by tour buses parked illegally. This is also just outside Tanjung Tokong police station, yet the police do not seem to care.

At Fettes Park, vehicles are double-parked in front of the shops until one is unable to use half the road. Policemen in uniform can be seen riding past but are oblivious to the situation.

Green Hall is a mess, with cars parked on both sides of the narrow road. On the roads near the City Bayview Hotel, vehicles are parked haphazardly, causing a bottleneck in the morning, afternoon and after 4pm. The situation is worse when the St Xavier and Convent schools finish at 1pm.

I strongly feel that unless the authorities are serious about solving the traffic problem, it will be best to remove all the yellow lines and “no parking” signs so that we do not make a mockery of the traffic laws.

What Penang police and the authorities need to do is merely follow what is being done in other places. Tow vehicles that block traffic, clamp those that are illegally parked and issue summonses all-day long.

Follow the United States, where traffic summonses are issued hourly. This will burn a hole in the pocket of traffic offenders and no one in his right mind will want to repeat this experience.

There is no need to wait for the roads to be expanded or for the Penang Outer Ring Road (PORR). Just implement the law, clear the cause of bottlenecks and I am sure there will be fewer jams.

Forget about educating Penang drivers. It is time to wield the big stick without fear or favour. If they do not know the basic rules of driving and road courtesy, the drivers have no business to be on the road.

There is an urgent need to expand the services provided by RapidPenang. If this is done effectively, we need not waste such a huge sum on PORR.

AJIT SINGH JESSY, Tanjung Bungah, Penang

Source: NST – May 19, 2008

I REFER to your report “Direct funding for youth groups from ministry” (NST, May 16).

As a citizen, parent and educator, I am concerned about how this direct funding for youth groups has benefited all the youth.

I would like to know what are the youth development programmes currently applicable to the youth in Ipoh, in particular. What kind of events are they? Which youth group have these development programmes been targeting? Is there evidence that these youth have benefited? How can we, as parents or academics, get to these programmes?

My observation is that youth who come for higher studies are a de-motivated lot who are pessimistic about their future.

I find students unable to communicate effectively and many are afraid to express themselves.

Furthermore, the situation is not improving. Most of these youth find their “entertainment” on the Internet, which does not need personal interaction. They are unable to appreciate their environment and, therefore, disregard it.

Creating a “Rakan Cyber” to reach out to the younger generation through cyberspace is fine, but I think we should also have more activities that involve the outdoors and social interaction.

These activities would stimulate their minds to think and act. It would be in line with the prime minister’s statement that “lively, happy, clever and capable youth are the building blocks to ensure the country’s progress”.

Malaysia is far from being a better place for the youth in comparison with other countries. Let us accept that there is much to be done to create a vibrant environment for our youth. We must encourage creativity. Let the youth play and dream to reach the stars.

CHELVI SREETHARARAJ, Ipoh

Source: NST – May 19, 2008

AFTER the debacle in the recent polls, Negri Sembilan state Barisan Nasional chairman Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan has gone on a crusade to capture the hearts and minds of the people.

Several measures have been promulgated to reduce state expenditure, like the abolition of the RM1,500 monthly allowance for assemblymen to set up offices in their constituencies (which was pocketed by some, the MB claimed).

He also ordered the new state executive council members to continue using the cars of the previous administration. “The money will be channelled to the underprivileged,” Mohamad said.

He has increased the number of welfare, religious and district officers. He also increased the state’s legal advisers to ensure there is no backlog in cases. An internal auditing system has been introduced to weed out overstaffed departments to cut costs and streamline services.

While the above measures may sound pragmatic and progressive, what would really fire the imagination and support of the people would be a revelation of all land deals, if any, undertaken by councillors in the previous administrations. The people would like to see any mismanagement addressed vigorously.

The present Penang government is doing this and the people are absolutely in sync with the move.

DR A. SOORIAN, Seremban

Source: NST – May 19, 2008

WITH reference to your report “Societies urge stiffer penalties on wildlife crimes” (NST, May 14), I wish to make some clarifications based on input from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks.

The Department of Wildlife and National Parks, together with the Natural Resources and the Environment Ministry and the Attorney-General’s Chambers are still working on amendments to the Protection of Wildlife Act 1972 (PWA).

However, between 2006 and 2007, priority was given to the drafting of legislation to meet the requirements of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites). This led to the passing of the International Trade in Endangered Species Act by Parliament in December last year.

The International Trade in Endangered Species Act 2007 has empowered seven federal and state agencies as the authorities to enforce the act after it was gazetted.

Once enforced, this act will cover many of the gaps related to the international trade in wildlife that are not covered under the Protection of Wildlife Act. Stiff penalties, including fines of up to RM2 million, will be a great deterrent to those who contravene Cites regulations.

With the passing of the International Trade in Endangered Species Act 2007, we now have two major pieces of legislation to deal with the enforcement of wildlife protection, one for the management of local species and another for the international trade of wildlife species.

Therefore, the delay in amending the PWA should not be seen as hampering the department’s work because many of the concerns raised by non-governmental organisations are Cites-related issues and these concerns have been addressed in the International Trade in Endangered Species Act 2007.

With the International Trade in Endangered Species Act 2007 in place, the department, together with the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry and Attorney-General’s Chambers, can now concentrate on amending the Protection of Wildlife Act 1972 by giving more attention to the protection, conservation and management of native species in Peninsular Malaysia.

The amendments to the PWA have taken into consideration all major recommendations put forward by NGOs, either through dialogues and workshops conducted by the department or through written submissions. Additionally, the department will also take into consideration, the views expressed during the recent dialogues with the environmental NGOs.

DR AMERJIT SINGH S. BHAG SINGH, for Natural Resources and Environment Ministry, Putrajaya

Source: NST – May 19, 2008

I WRITE in response to J.M. Ding’s letter on the use of English to teach Maths and Science.

I wholly believe that the policy of teaching Maths and Science in English should remain.

Since this policy was implemented in the national education system six years ago, it has proven to be an advantage to schoolchildren. All I ask is, don’t change the policy and revert to teaching Maths and Science in Bahasa Malaysia.

The policy should stay for the sake of all our schoolchildren.

In this day and age, we cannot deny that English is not only a lingua franca but also widely used in the international arena of science, maths and information technology.

With Maths and Science taught in English, our children will be better able to cope should they consider entering universities overseas.

STEFFIE YIN , Auckland, New Zealand

Source: NST – May 19, 2008

I COULD not agree more with J.M. Ding of Subang Jaya (”There’s no valid reason to back-track - NST, May 15).

I have three children in school and all three have been victims of the fickle-mindedness of the Ministry of Education.

My oldest girl did 11 years of Maths and Science in Bahasa Malaysia and switched to English when she started her tertiary education last year.

My second daughter completed the first six years in Bahasa Malaysia and switched to English when she started Form 1 in 2006. Now she is in Form 3.

My son is completing his primary education this year and will be sitting for the Ujian Pencapaian Sekolah Rendah Maths and Science papers in English.

If the Ministry of Education decides to revert to teaching Maths and Science in Bahasa Malaysia then my son will start his secondary education of those subjects in Bahasa Malaysia.

Three children with three different mediums of instruction of Maths and Science over a span of 12 years. Doesn’t this say a lot about the state of our education policies and how it affects our children?

My children are questioning these policies and are very unhappy over the way the ministry is gambling with their future. Politics should never have a hand in the education sector. Once policies are decided upon, they should not be changed just to please certain special-interest groups.

I ask the Minister of Education to decide wisely. We are ordinary folk who still have faith in our national schools and do not have the means to send our children to private schools or to study abroad.

I am sure there are many families out there who find themselves in the same predicament.

PAMELA JAYASINGHE, Cheras, Selangor

Source: NST – May 19, 2008