I would like to ask about other languages, especially Chinese, Malay and Tamil.

Many young Chinese Singaporeans cannot speak their mother tongue properly, especially variety show hosts and radio deejays who misread or mispronounce Chinese words. More Chinese Singaporeans speak Mandarin now, but in a sentence you hear a mixture of 'lor, then, but'. This is really frustrating to hear.

Singapore is fortunate to be multicultural and we have the environment to master different languages. I hope the authorities will look into speaking other languages properly as well.

Kok Mei Hui (Ms)

This article was first published in The Straits Times on December 16, 2008.