KUALA LUMPUR, March 26 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the government will continue to endeavour to uphold Bahasa Melayu (BM) not only as the premier language in the country but to also expand it to the international level.
In his latest posting on his Facebook, Najib said he hoped Bahasa Melayu, which used to be the lingua franca in numerous activities, could return to play the role.
“Hopefully, one day Bahasa Melayu will return as a lingua franca worldwide,” he said.
He also expressed pride at witnessing foreign participants’ oratory in Bahasa Melayu when attending the 2016 Prime Minister’s Cup Bahasa Melayu International Oratory Competition Finale in Putrajaya yesterday.
National participant Muhammad Haziq Jamaludin was crowned the champion for the Malay World category.
Tanzanian student, Abdalla Hassan Gharib, who is now studying at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, was the winner for the International Student in Malaysia category while Hatsune Yanai of Japan was crowned as champion for the international category.
A total 47 Malay Studies students at higher institutions of learning worldwide took part in the competition.
Of the total, only nine were picked to take part in the final which was aired live via TV2, Radio Televisyen Malaysia. — Bernama
