LETTERS: Since the 1970s, the government has embarked on an ambitious project of empowering Bahasa Melayu into a language of knowledge.
Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) tasked a team of experts with translating English technical terms (scientific, commercial, legal, etc) into Bahasa Melayu.
This translation endeavour would become more unsustainable now as keeping up with the latest technological developments is such a challenging task for every nation since the turn of the 21st century.
Current technologies are evolving so rapidly that all nations are working hard to master English so they won't be left behind.
Huawei, for instance, has more than a thousand English-educated engineers. Otherwise it won't have achieved more than 3,000 5G patents, the highest in the world.
China sends a large number of its youngsters to study science and technology in Western universities yearly.
While it is compulsory to learn Mandarin in China, English is the most sought after foreign language among the mainland Chinese. Many parents there spend large sums of money on English-medium schooling, starting at kindergarten.
I discovered this when I had a short stint in a hotel project in Shanghai more than a decade ago.
Many developing and developed countries treat English as a second language to remain competitive in a borderless world.
A German hotel guest once told me before my retirement in 2011 that many German parents sent their children to international schools in Germany as English was the most sought after second language in his country.
While Bahasa Melayu should be the focus, we have to be mindful of the ongoing predicament faced by thousands of local graduates due to their weak command of English.
Many graduates could hardly string a sentence in English, let alone communicate effectively.
Given that English is commonly used in a borderless world, surely it will help if we are fluent in the language.
PATRICK TEH
Ipoh, Perak
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times