Just to share a true story on the how our Chinese schools have been marginalised.

This happened sometime in 1996 when I was working on a housing development job in Seberang Prai. The developer was developing this 48-acre piece of land and adjacent to it was a Chinese primary school. As part of the planning requirement, the developer was requested to surrender some land to the Education Department to build a school.

The developer was glad to give out two acres of land for the Chinese primary school for their expansion programme in view of the expanding number of students there, and such a plan was presented to the education office in Penang. The plan was rejected instantly by an officer who openly claimed that no land was to be given for any expansion programme of a Chinese school! Instead, he asked for the land to be allocated for a public secondary school to be shared with the adjacent land owner in future.

The development eventually kicked off but not long after the commencement of works on site, the state assemblyperson for Sungai Bakap passed away unexpectedly. The Chinese community there saw it the best opportunity to seek support from the government to provide land for the Chinese school expansion. With all the BN propaganda machine in place, Koh Tsu Koon came along seemingly played the heroic role for the Chinese community in being able to deliver a piece of land for the school. He eventually won the by-election.

Even if the federal government has a non-racial policy with the regards to the education system, this is not evidenced by the grassroots officers. I am sure many in Sungai Bakap will still remember the day their Chinese school received the land and all would think it was the CM's effort in securing the land.

Little do they know that the land was already offered to them but was taken away rudely but one single officer in the state education office. And I am sure that is just the tip of an iceberg with regards to the expansion of Chinese schools in the country.