An opposition leader today questioned the government's motive for introducing compulsory national service for secondary school-leavers in Malaysia.

DAP secretary-general Kerk Kim Hock said if the government's intention was to instil patriotism among young Malaysians, compulsory national service was not the answer.

"There is no need to introduce a compulsory national service if it is just to instil patriotism," he said in a telephone interview on the government's proposal.

Kerk, who is also the member of Parliament for Kota Melaka, said compulsory national service should only be introduced if there was a genuine need to augment the country's defence.

He said the situation was different in countries such as Singapore and Taiwan where compulsory national service is enforced as they need a back-up for their military.