Letters - Room for two official languages

I CONGRATULATE Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem for making English the second official language of the state, stating that he was "only realistic" and that "as long as we are on the Earth, we must learn and master English." For good measure, he added: "Even those living in Mongolia have to learn English."
The Johor sultan had earlier said that he supported the use of English as the medium of instruction in schools as it would bring about rapid progress and prosperity to the people.
These two prominent sons of Malaysia are truly visionaries who are down to earth in our modern era of globalisation. They have the foresight to see that although English may not be the most spoken language in the world, it is nevertheless the official language of many countries: over two billion people use English in cross-border business communication on a regular basis.
It is pathetic to learn that down here even doctors resign from their jobs because they are not able to speak fluently in English.
We are trying to bring in English teachers from abroad including India but there is nothing to beat making English another official language to enhance command of the lingo as regular usage is the key to achieve the objective. "Use it or lose it" is the mantra because if you don't continue to practise or use an ability, you are likely to lose it. For example, if you don't drive a car now and then, you would likely lose that skill.
The world's blockbuster movies, books and music are published and produced in English. Most of the internet content is in English. So mastering the English language will open the windows to an incredible wealth of information and knowledge.
English poses no danger to Bahasa Malaysia. As we see today in Bahasa Malaysia, many English words are incorporated into the language with gay abandon. Therefore these languages working alongside can complement each other to greater glory of expression.
By making this bold move, Sarawak will save millions of ringgit in foreign exchange in eliminating the need for international schools. Also, Sarawak will no longer be one of the poorest states in Malaysia.
Sarawak will now see giant developments culturally and materially so that it can compete with the best in the world of mind and matter.
We hope, in due course, as suggested by the Johor sultan, Sarawak will promote its education system to one where English is the medium of instruction in all schools with a compulsory credit-pass in Bahasa Malaysia.
Dr A. Soorian
Seremban