KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 5 (Bernama) -- Efforts to elevate the status of the Malay language as the national language must be driven as a collective national agenda involving all stakeholders, including the private sector, higher education institutions and the people.
Multimedia University (MMU) Faculty of Law Professor and Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) Board of Governors member Prof Dr Ramalinggam Rajamanickam said the position of the Malay language was clearly enshrined under Article 152 of the Federal Constitution as the national language of the country.
“All citizens have a responsibility to uphold the dignity of the Malay language,” he said in Bernama TV’s Ruang Bicara programme titled “Bahasa Melayu: Jiwa Bangsa, Identiti Negara” today.
Ramalinggam said the main challenge facing the Malay language now was not its level of usage, which was generally satisfactory, but maintaining the quality of its use amid growing issues such as “bahasa rojak”, referring to the mixing of languages, and linguistic confusion.
He said the use of “bahasa rojak” or abbreviations on social media was not a major issue in informal settings, but proper Malay language usage with correct grammar and sentence structure was essential in official matters.
Ramalinggam said that from a legal standpoint, the position of the Malay language was safeguarded not only under Article 152 of the Federal Constitution but also through the National Language Act 1963/67, which stipulates that the national language must be used in official matters.
“ The ministry must monitor its implementation, while universities must ensure that the national language truly serves as a language of knowledge without compromising the need for English proficiency,” he said.
Touching on the development of technology and artificial intelligence (AI), Ramalinggam said Malaysia should not wait for technology to adapt to the language, but must empower the Malay language to enable it to drive and master technology.
He said the effort required comprehensive involvement from the government, higher education institutions, researchers and language experts to ensure that the Malay language remained relevant in the fields of science, technology, economics and AI.
According to him, the Malay language had vast potential to become a language of knowledge, having once served as a lingua franca in the region and continuing to be studied in countries such as China, Japan and India.
“Empowering the national language does not mean sidelining other languages. We can master multiple languages, but the national language must remain a symbol of national identity,” he said.
--BERNAMA