COMMENT | G25 notes from the Berita Harian report dated May 24, 2022, that in addressing the symposium on promoting the use of Bahasa Malaysia at Asean and international meetings, the chief secretary to the government called on the Public Services Department to consider corrective and punitive measures to enforce the use of Bahasa Malaysia in the civil service and other government-related agencies including GLCs (government-linked companies).

He would like to see full compliance with government policy as it was announced by the prime minister that the national language is used not only within the country but also internationally.

While G25 supports the role and importance of Bahasa Malaysia for creating a united nation between the various races that form the country, there must also be recognition of the importance of English as the universal language of the international community in many aspects of daily life.

Malaysia will have a lot to lose if there are punitive measures on those who use English in their official work in government departments because there are many areas in which civil servants may have to communicate and express themselves in English to get a common understanding of the problems and issues they face.

For example, in discussing...