KUALA LUMPUR (July 15): Recognising the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) will not undermine the position of Bahasa Malaysia as the country’s national language, said Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik.

Nevertheless, he assured that his ministry is currently undertaking a holistic study on the matter before making any decision on the recognition of the UEC.

“Recognising the UEC is one of the promises under the Pakatan Harapan (PH) election manifesto, but before we make a decision we need to take into account the importance of Bahasa Malaysia as the national language, and whether or not there will be any impact in recognising the UEC that would affect the unity and harmony among Malaysians,” he said in a statement posted on his Facebook today.

As such, views of all stakeholders are important in this decision-making process and it remains my priority, he added.

UEC is issued to graduates of Chinese independent high schools and the United Chinese School Committees’ Association of Malaysia has been pushing for it to be recognised for years.

On July 8, Deputy Education Minister Teo Nie Ching reportedly pledged to work on getting official recognition of the UEC by this year.

"I hope I can finish this job before the end of the year, that is my aim," she was quoted by Malaysiakini as saying.

As a part of its electoral promises, PH pledged to recognise UEC within 100 days of gaining federal power.

The UEC, which is issued to graduates of Chinese independent high schools, is recognised by local private higher education institutions and many universities overseas.