Zetty's letter Where are the ministers' children studying? is interesting and should be pondered upon by all Malaysians to sharpen our critical attitude toward the politicos and opportunists.

If we observe the educational backgrounds of those most zealous Umno leaders who now champions of the 'national' education system, we cannot fail to find that most of them are not products of the system they claim to be the best for 'national integration', 'national unity' and what not.

Najib Abdul Razak, Hishammuddin Hussein and Khairy Kamaluddin, for example, are products par excellence from the education system of Malaysia's former colonial master.

Why didn't their parents send them to Universiti Malaya, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia or Universiti Sains Malaysia?

Why did former prime minister Abdul Razak send Najib to Britain for secondary schooling and not to local and 'national' secondary schools? Why did former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and current prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi send their sons and daughters overseas for higher education and not to UM, UKM or USM?

Indeed, the same question can be asked of most of the Umno, Umno Youth, Wanita Umno and Puteri Umno leaders as well not forgetting their senior sycophants and minions in the media, academia and bureaucracy.

The point I'm trying to make is not that Western or British education is not good. Rather, it is the hypocrisy of the highest order shown by these national leaders.

Indeed, if we also observe carefully, it is often these Anglised and neo-colonial Umno elites who appear to the most 'nationalistic' in their rhetoric and stage-managed appearance in domestic politics in their attempts to excite and dupe their vernacular-educated constituents.

If they themselves have no confidence in the local or so-called 'national' education system, why do they insist that it is the best for the children and grandchildren of ordinary Malaysians?

Have we forgotten the slogan of 'leadership by example'?