In the last years of his tenure as prime minister, Dr Mahathir Mohamad must have realised that there is such a thing as too much nationalism. Without nationwide consultation, without any penetrating studies by experts, and certainly without seeking opinions from parents, teachers, and students, his government decreed overnight that Math and Science must be taught in English.

Not a note of protest was heard from the Malay teachers association, and other usually irascible Malay nationalist bodies.

The move was an open admission that the exclusive emphasis on Bahasa Malaysia in schools and universities has failed to produce globally competitive human resources. Dr M may have been a giant figure in the short history of Malaysia, and has been instrumental in shaping the political landscape of our country. But his brand of Malay nationalism in the matter of the national language has victimised many generations of young Malaysians in developing their potentials in more ways than one.