Dr Mana's and K Narayanasamy's views that the removal of our vernacular education system will unite Malaysians are over simplistic. The diversity of education methods in the country is a national treasure and should be upheld. Unity will come from mutual respect and fair treatment for all - not necessarily from a uniform education.

I went to four primary schools including a Chinese one, a national (kebangsaan) one and two national-type schools, which were former Catholic mission schools. I can say from first-hand experience that each schooling system has its strength and provided a foundation for Malaysians to compete in a diversified world. I got along well with friends from various backgrounds.

I then went to a secondary school where 90 percent of my friends are bumiputeras. I learnt to speak good Malay and live with people of other races. If the authority had left us alone to develop and progress freely, my friends and I would have continued to mingle and later emerge as a true Bangsa Malaysia at the end of our education cycle.

Instead, after the Sijil Rendah Pelajaran (SRP), they chose some of my friends for bumiputera-only boarding schools hence excluding me. After the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM), the system excluded me from matriculation and scholarships because I was not a bumiputera.

I managed to get into a public university in the 1980s, but there was already severe racial polarisation there. Perhaps it was because most of ex-matriculation students already knew each other, so the non-matric students just naturally got together.

When it came to choosing a career, I avoided public services for the fear of being excluded from promotions just like how I was excluded from matriculation etc. Many employers are also very racially defined. Now, as much as I miss hanging out with people of other races, I end up being with people of my own race.

Looking back, I don't think our primary vernacular system is the cause of disunity. On the contrary, it enriches our Malaysian heritage. The real problems are with the uneven playing fields that split bumis and non-bumis from secondary school onwards.