KUALA LUMPUR – The high court will hear on November 23 a challenge on the legality of vernacular schools over their use of non-national mediums of instruction.
Lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla, who represents one of the plaintiffs, said the ruling was made after judge Nazlan Mohd Ghazali heard arguments from all sides this afternoon.
“The court has decided that the case will be heard from November 23 on the basis of submissions on the affidavit that will be filed,” he was quoted as saying by The Malaysian Insight.
He said affidavits and sworn statements from experts as well as documents referred to in the claim will be submitted to court.
The suit was initiated by the Federation of Peninsular Malay Students (GPMS) and also the Islamic Education Development Council (Mappim) in December 2019.
They are seeking a court declaration that the existence of vernacular schools go against the provisions in the federal constitution as Article 152(1) defines Malay as the national language.
The group added that Sections 2, 17 and 28 of the Education Act 1966, which allow Chinese and Tamil schools to conduct their lessons in their native languages, are against the constitution.
They also wish for the federal government to ensure that the vernacular school curriculum is in line with national schools within six years of the court’s ruling. – The Vibes, October 22, 2021
