KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 21 — DAP’s Lim Kit Siang today said the recent tumult over the introduction of khat in primary vernacular schools shows that many Malaysians are living in racial and religious silos.

The Iskandar Puteri MP urged Malaysians to make an effort to leave such chambers and take a more “Malaysian” stance on issues, noting the Malaysia Day celebrations next month.

“The Jawi controversy is a lesson to all Malaysians that we should be informed of the background facts of a problem and to take a Malaysian approach to all problems,” he said in a statement.

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As example, he said he was shocked to find out that 95 per cent of Chinese and Indian Malaysians were unaware that jawi has been a part of the national school syllabus for primary schools for the past two years, without disclosing the source of the data.

He pointed out that the curriculum was revised to introduce it to a year earlier to Standard Four students instead of Standard Five by ministers from MCA, MIC, SUPP and Umno in September of 2015 when Barisan Nasional was government.

“Now, MCA, Gerakan, MIC and SUPP leaders are loudest in condemning the introduction of Jawi in Chinese and Tamil primary schools, although this decision was taken by their Ministers four years ago in 2015, to be implemented yearly in the revised textbooks from 2017 — 2022,” he said. 

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He claimed that if there had been no change to the government in last year’s elections, then khat would likely have become compulsory and a testing subject, unlike now when it has become optional for students in vernacular schools.

He said Malaysians must cast off their “shells” for unity.

“Let us come out of our separate ethnic and religious shells, interact and appreciate the virtues and best values of each other’s ethnicity and leverage on Malaysia’s special position as the confluence of four great world civilisations and not to fall victim to those who only want to engender and incite suspicion, distrust, fear and hatred, pitting race against race and religion against religion, through lies, falsehoods, fake news and hate speech.

“Let us develop the confidence of ‘I am, you are, we are Malaysian’ theme to take on the world, and not to fight among ourselves, so that Malaysia can become a top world-class nation of unity, freedom, justice, excellence and integrity,” he said.