I refer to the letter A daughter devastated, a mother with no answer .

The teacher's daughter who in spite of getting 11 A1's has become a disqualified person for government scholarships is a tale of not one person but too many to count. The heart aches of many deserving parents and their poor children.

I, too, have been a dedicated teacher in a government technical school for 33 long years imparting my knowledge to mostly Malay students without any color prejudice but when it comes to my own daughter, I am segregated as a coloured person.

My daughter obtained 8A1s, 4A2s and 1B3 in the 2006 SPM examination. She would have got 13A1s if not for the untimely demise of her maternal grandmother during the exact time of her SPM examination in November 2006.

I specifically instructed my daughter to take 13 subjects to make sure she scores 13 A1's to ensure she gets the JPA scholarship. However, when her results were otherwise both of us knew we were doomed.

We assumed and were confident that she could get a place for matriculation but again it was a big disappointment. I wrote an appeal letter on the account of she not getting any reply to her status of her application. In my appeal letter I mentioned of me being a teacher and also enclosed a letter from the local state assembly person in support of the appeal. Even to this, there was no reply.

Frankly, all my dedicated service to the country and my students went into the dustbin due to the irresponsible attitude of the Matriculation Unit. I was very saddened by this episode because I honestly felt that my appeal letter should have been replied to. This is the least they could have done for me.

It does not matter if my daughter does not fall in their criteria of so-called 'qualifications' but they should have respected my years of service to the country. All along I have been teaching other people's children.

Though disheartened by this national happening of vagrant racism, I encouraged my daughter to take up the STPM and obtain 4A's just to proof that when the going gets harder, the tough become tougher.

My daughter will be sitting for the STPM examination this year and I am pushing her to study hard and get the distinction of getting 4A's. Again, I am also prepared to know that my daughter will fail to get admission to a local university to do her desired medical programme. I am praying hard that the authorities will not be blinded again by racial prejudices this time around.

I just do not understand the policy-makers. Deserving children should be given all the encouragement to excel. All Malaysian children are citizens of this great country. My love for this great country is diminishing due to the shortsightedness of our policy-makers. May god bless them in spite of their weaknesses.

Meanwhile I pray to see that my daughter gets her 4A's at the end of this year. For all parents and children who share the same plight as me, please do not be disheartened by this policy-making 'pegawai-pegawai ' who have heartless souls. They do not know the value of hard work because they rose up to their present posts of ' pegawai kanan ' by dubious means too. Only learned men will see things in learned perspectives.