KUALA LUMPUR: The government should explain how it would assess a person's Bahasa Melayu proficiency under the proposed Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2024 on citizenship.
Perikatan Nasional chief whip Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan (PN- Kota Baru) had asked the government whether the mechanism would be in line with Article 152 of the Constitution, which upholds the position of the national language.
"The proposed amendment to Article 15(1)(c) states that the applicant must have adequate knowledge of Bahasa Melayu to satisfy the federal government, in this case the home minister.
"What are the mechanisms or methods that will be used to ensure that the applicant has 'adequate' proficiency in the language.
"Would it fulfil the provision under Article 15 of the Constitution?" said Takiyuddin during the debate.
The amendment would add the requirement of adequate Bahasa Melayu knowledge on a foreign woman married to a Malaysian, as part of her application for citizenship, which the Home Ministry said was consistent with the Federal Constitution.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail was reported to have said language proficiency assessment would include written tests and interviews.