A police report has been lodged against a Johor state assemblyperson for suggesting that students who fail to master the national language be stripped of their citizenship.

Pekan Nenas assemblyperson Yeo Tung Siong lodged the police report at the Nusajaya police headquarters today.

Yeo said the speech made by Jorak assemblyperson Shahruddin Salleh had “seditious elements”.

“His speech had questioned the citizenship rights of all students who cannot master the national language regardless of race,” he said, as sighted through the police report.

The DAP assemblyperson expressed hope for the police to investigate the matter and for legal action to be taken against Shahruddin.

According to the verbatim draft of the Johor state assembly yesterday, Shahruddin had asked whether the government is considering to implement a special examination to test the students’ proficiency in the national language.

“If they fail this test, have their citizenship stripped,” he had said.

Shahruddin also said that many students were not able to master the language and this was even prevalent among the Malays.

“Even my own neighbour whose father and mother are Malays but because their child goes to an international school, the child is unable to converse in Malay,” he said.

'Remarks would backfire'

Meanwhile, Gerakan organising secretary Lau Hoi Keong said such extreme chauvinist remarks happen when the Umno AGM looms to seek attention and political mileage.

However, this would backfire and make Umno altogether more unpopular, he warned.

He further described the assemblyperson as being “a clown”,”stupid”, “pedantic” and “ridiculous”, to ignore the federal constitution's quarantee of the people's right to mother tongue education, as well as linking citizenship with the ability to master a language.

To strip a person of his or her citizenship is something serious and critical, he said.

Shaharuddin should be responsible for his “seditious” remark, and he ought to retract it and apolpgise to the nation, he said in a statement.

“The award of citizenship has nothing to do with passing a BM test, Only those who committed severe crimes like treason lost their citizenship. What was his basis to suggest so, anyway?” questioned Lee Hong Tee, an MCA central committee member.

He advised the state assemblyperson to read the federal constitution before speaking out and exposing his ignorance.

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