KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim wants all government departments to ignore or return without any action all letters they receive that are not written in the Malay language.
He reminded the departments not to entertain or simply return such written correspondences that use any language other than the national language, which is Malay.
Inaugurating a carnival to celebrate the national language and the “National Reading Decade” at Cyberjaya today, he said that he has realised the existence of an attitude felt to have been “misguided” or “distorted” by some parties.
He claimed that these parties often try to forsake a basic tenet in the federal constitution to communicate with government departments in the national language.
“So let me remind you of this: for local companies and local universities, including private ones, the instruction is that whoever writes in a language other than the national language, the letter will be returned,” he said.
“Empowerment of culture, language and literature is something integral in nation building.”
“So, let’s not try to underestimate it,” he was quoted as saying by Bernama.
“And I hope this reminder is taken into consideration.”
He stressed that there is also a clear instruction on this from the director-general of the Public Services Department, Datuk Zulkapli Mohamed, to not service any letter sent by citizens or local companies other than in the national language.
Anwar stressed that there should not be any confusion between the need to communicate in English internationally and the stature of the Malay language under the constitution.
He said that the government emphasises on English as an international language and the language of trade.
He also urged the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka to continue moving towards empowering the Malay language.
He said that the government will always support such efforts as they are part of the objectives of his Madani administration.
Anwar also paid tribute to the country’s literati for their expertise and contributions in developing the national language.
This penchant towards the language needs to be passed on to the younger generation.
He said they need to be imbibed with the determination to read so as to refine their mastery of the Malay language more deeply. – The Vibes, October 25, 2023
