Umno Youth deputy chief Khairy Jamaluddin should learn from Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak on how to handle MCA's demand for more Chinese schools, the party said in its official website.

Stating that Khairy was 'over-reacting', the MCA urged him to emulate Najib's stand to deliberate on the issue behind closed doors, consider the Chinese community's feeling and honour the national education policy.

Also in the firing line was Umno vice-president and Malacca Chief Minister Mohd Ali Rustam, who has also opposed MCA's proposal to build more Chinese schools.

"Mohd Ali and 'political newbie' Khairy are being over sensitive, neglecting the Federal Constitution and rights of the different ethnic groups to their mother-tongue education," said MCA, which is the second largest Barisan Nasional component party.

MCA's statement was made in a commentary written by its central publicity department and posted on its Chinese version website yesterday.

However, the same statement was not published in another similar commentary written in Bahasa Malaysia. Last week, MCA declared that it would submit a memorandum to the government calling for more Chinese schools under the party's input to the Ninth Malaysia Plan.

There are two streams under the Malaysian education system, namely the national and national-type schools. The majority of Malay students are sent to national schools while national-type schools comprise Chinese and Tamil vernacular schools.

Making national schools popular

The Chinese-based party stressed that its proposal for more Chinese schools was aimed at producing more talents and enhancing the country's competitiveness.

"This issue should not be politicised. Mohd Ali and Khairy should learn from the deputy premier and stop harping on the issue to avoid any uneasiness," MCA cautioned in the commentary.

In criticising the MCA proposal, Khairy - son-in-law of Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi - said the government want national schools to be the first choice of students, not vernacular schools.

Abdullah was also quoted in the press today as saying he would continue with efforts to strengthen national schools so that they become the first choice of all Malaysians, adding that he would give an appropriate reply to the MCA's memorandum when he gets it.

Mandarin-medium schools remain a thorny issue in the country.

The introduction of the vision school by former premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad a few years ago had elicited strong objections from educationists who favour vernacular schools for fear that the move would finally kill off Chinese and Tamil schools.

The vision school concept puts Malay, Chinese and Indian students under one roof to break down racial barriers.

However, since Abdullah took over, he had switched to put more emphasis on national schools and promote them among non-Malays.