KUALA LUMPUR: Umno youth chief Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh has chided former Penang Deputy Chief Minister P. Ramasamy for his claim that racial polarisation stems from political institutions.
He argued that it is the attitude of individuals like Ramasamy that has hindered unity among races all this while.
"You claim your party is multiracial, aiming to form the Malaysian race, but when it comes to education, you want it to be segregated?
"People like you in politics are the real reason why unity among races cannot flourish. Are you drunk or what?" he said via his Facebook yesterday.
Ramasamy now leads Urimai, a new party open to all races but with a focus on the Indian community.
A few days ago, Akmal told the government to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the vernacular education system, by instilling national values and mastery of the Malay language as the national language.
However, Akmal's statement was criticised by Ramasamy, who described the issue of unity in this country not caused by the existence of such schools, but by partisan institutions pushing their own agendas.
Akmal's statement follows the Federal Court's decision last month to dismiss an appeal by two non-governmental organisations (NGOs) seeking to declare vernacular schools unconstitutional, thereby protecting their constitutionality.
A panel of three Federal Court judges chaired by Datuk Mary Lim Thiam Suan, in a majority decision of 2-1, rejected the leave to appeal, filed by the Malaysian Islamic Education Development Council (MAPPIM) and the Association of Malaysian Writers (Gapena) against the Court of Appeal's decision.
This means the Court of Appeal's judgement on Nov 23 last year, that the use of Chinese or Tamil as the medium of instruction in these schools is not prohibited in National-type Schools (SJK) or vernacular schools, remains unchanged.