Take action against Razali for racial statement

DAP's Kulasegaran said Razali's remarks were most ridiculous and an unacceptable argument as language does not hinder national unity.

IPOH: Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak should take action against Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Razali Ibrahim for his irresponsible statement that vernacular schools would hinder national unity.

DAP MP for Ipoh Barat M Kulasegaran said Razali’s call on the Barisan Nasional federal government not to build new Chinese and Tamil primary schools as they would hamper the national agenda to achieve racial unity at primary school level was “extreme, unjust and anti-1Malaysia.”

Last week Razali allegedly said this when he opposed the construction of more Chinese primary schools citing that 453 existing Chinese primary schools had been categorised as under-enrolled micro-schools.

Kulasegaran said Razali’s remarks were most ridiculous and an unacceptable argument as language does not hinder national unity.

He said Razali’s remarks were like rubbing salt into wounds of the people who had been hurt and angered by BN’s long neglect of Chinese and Tamil primary schools, and their demand for more schools.

“It is the unjust racial policies implemented by the BN government that has  had hindered the achievement of national unity.

“Razali’s remarks proved he was not fit to hold the position of a deputy minister,” Kulasegaran said in a statement.

Kulasegaran said Razali’s tactic of highlighting the number of under-enrolled Chinese primary schools to hide his true motive of not wanting to see new Chinese primary schools, had exposed his stupidity.

While it was true that some schools faced under-enrollment due to population migration, the DAP leader said many other places faced acute shortages of Chinese and Tamil primary schools due to population growth.

He argued that the BN government had not been responsive to demands from respective communities to build more Chinese and Tamil primary schools to proportionate population increase.

He asked Razali on whether he was aware that as of Jan 31 this year, 1,317 national, 453 Chinese and 298 Tamil primary schools were micro-schools with less than 150 pupils.

Hence, he said going by Razali’s argument, no new national, Chinese or Tamil school should be built.

“How absurd?” asked Kulasegaran, also the DAP national vice-chairman.