A MCA minister today said it was up to political parties, not the government, to punish members who called for vernacular schools to be abolished.

Deputy Education Minister Chong Sin Woon said this when asked by Lee Boon Chye (PKR-Gopeng) what action the government would take against Umno members who defied BN's policy of supporting vernacular schools during the the Sept 16 red shirt rally.

"This is up to the political party rather than the government. Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak, at the opening of the 62nd MCA general assembly, emphasised the SJKC's would not be abolished.

"This is because BN's policy is based on religious and cultural diversity, as determined by the founding fathers," Chong said.

Option for other races

Chong also dismissed claims by some quarters that Chinese-medium schools stood in the way of national unity.

"This is not true because today, some 15 percent of students at SJKCs are non-Chinese. This shows that this is an option for other races.

"If we don't rattle this issue, it won't stand in the way of national unity," he said.

Camps against vernacular schools claim that it stops the Chinese and Indians from fully integrating with Malaysian society.

They have proposed single stream schools, where all Malaysians should study.

Some single stream school proponents have suggested that Tamil and Mandarin be offered as a subject, to balance out the loss of vernacular education.