It was rather sad to see the meanness that came about following the poor English spoken by the presenter for a school television programme recently. The complaint was fair, the meanness, well, it was just mean.
The cruelty and malice accorded to the host, programme, producer, the Education Ministry, and, to some, even extending to the government, showed how easy it was to be mean and callous in this age of social media.
The host's struggle with the language and the fact that she was still used is a manifestation of something beyond the state of English proficiency. It was not her fault that she was less competent in the language, but surely it was those who insisted on sticking with her.
On the surface it was a casting issue. Media companies, for instance, do auditions when looking for hosts, and those chosen would come from a long list, whittled down after training and evaluation. Sometimes, poor execution gets in the way of a good intention.
Incidentally, the whole episode brought to light the hypocrisy of some critics who lamented at the poor English, and yet are not at all critical of Malaysians who could not, or would not, communicate adequately in the national language.
I have a sense, too, that some are almost pinching their noses at the idea of speaking or writing in the national language. Even as they criticise someone's grammar and pronunciation — oh, how could they mispronounce "subtle", "awry" or "Leicester"? — they were forgiving of the atrocious Bahasa Malaysia spoken by some politicians, business leaders and personalities. However, that is a subject for another day.
The unfortunate incident with the host also highlighted an existential crisis in the country — how much angst and hair pulling over a language, the popularity, mastery and importance of which seems to be getting less and less by the day.
Certainly, in commerce, government and diplomacy, it was the language of choice. It was also true in many social circles, especially the English-educated crowd, many of whom were more comfortable with the language.
I remember years ago, an Indonesian asked rather curiously why Malaysians, including the Malays, spoke to each other in English?
Over time, with the change in our education policy, the rising importance of Bahasa Melayu, the growth in vernacular education, political expediency, chauvinism, etc — there is enough blame to go around — we as a nation became less adept in the language.
If before there were English-medium schools that exposed rural or economically-challenged students to the language, we do not have that now. Hence, a widening English gap between the haves and have-less.
English proficiency now is also largely a function of social-economy and geography. Those in urban centres, or who have families that speak English rather widely, or who get enrolled in enrichment programmes, are generally better at it.
Our young are largely victims of policies and ideologies of their elders. Graduates of national, vernacular or religious schools are generally weak in English. It is a problem that cannot be resolved within a few years of tertiary education, hence the endless hand-wringing over graduates' poor command of English.
There are people who see the superiority of the English language and extend the proficiency into some sort of determinant to someone's intellect. Of course, no one would admit to believe so, but there is almost a nudge and a wink in that direction.
The older generation, many of whom were taught in English, and we are getting less and less by the day, may moan about the poor standard of English, but there is nothing much that can be done, unless there is a national desire to do something about it.
There is now a strong emphasis on Bahasa Melayu at national schools, and in mother tongues at vernacular schools, and something has to give, and it is the English language. Attempts to teach Mathematics and Science in English, for instance, were roundly defeated by almost everyone for a variety of reasons.
Incidentally, many of us were not born into the language. We struggle, even like some native speakers do, at perplexing grammar rules, the baffling pronunciation guide and, at times, equally confusing spelling conventions. Like many non-native speakers, our proficiency is compromised and our grammar is at sea. However, that is to be expected.
In general, there are fewer people who are comfortable in the language now. In terms of proficiency, it is even fewer still.
We see non-native English speakers from all over the world communicating in the language, warts and all, but who have managed to get their message across.
Sometimes, our search for the perfect English may make some of us who are not as well-versed to pull back because they are made to feel inadequate.
I have witnessed snickers of amusement and even denunciations at halting attempts by salesmen, civil servants, waiters, etc to communicate in English with little appreciation at the effort being made by the speakers.
Of course, we should want our people to be eloquent in English, but if we cannot, we must at least make them comfortable. It is a compromise, of course, low-balling our expectations, but it is something that we have to live with at least until there exists a real will to change things.
The writer, a former NSTP group managing editor, is now a social media adviser
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times