Malaysians will have a chance to decide whether the English medium of instruction for Science and Mathematics would be brought back should Pakatan Harapan form the next federal government.

Harapan chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad conceded at a press conference yesterday that there are mixed reactions to the policy so far.

"We have to seek public opinion on this. It used to be my suggestion. It was approved, then it was abolished. But the demand is still there.

"Some schools use English while others use Bahasa Melayu. If we form the government, we will conduct a ‘pungutan suara’ (referendum)," he said, in response to a question from a reporter.

Mahathir had introduced the policy in 2003 but it was rolled back in 2012.

Among the fiercest opponents to this policy were some political figures that are now allied with Mahathir in Harapan.

When the policy was abolished in 2012, Muhyiddin Yassin, Mahathir's colleague in Bersatu, was the education minister.

When it was pointed out that Harapan's predecessor - the Pakatan Rakyat coalition - did not support PPSMI and whether the new coalition would support it now, Mahathir said the matter has been agreed upon.

"At the time (of Pakatan Rakyat), we did not discuss this policy. But now we are in agreement: The matter will be referred to the public," Mahathir said.

At present, about 1,300 schools nationwide have adopted the "dual language programme" (DLP), where the subjects of Science and Mathematics are conducted in English.

Some reports claim that the programme has helped improve English proficiency. However, the DLP remains an option for schools, rather than a mandatory system.