KK Again...

Just returned from another debate trip to Kota Kinabalu, that gorgeous ocean-side city in Sabah. Once again, I took some of my students to participate in the Borneo Cup debate (or was it Borneo Open debate? Can't remember!)

This is an annual debate competition which was originally set up as a showcase for student debaters from Borneo universities (i.e. Sarawak, Sabah and Indonesian Kalimantan). So far, it has been a very successful event (well, my university has won it twice!) but I can't stop myself from commenting on a disturbing new trend that has started this year - opening the competition to teams from the Malaysian Peninsula.

As anyone who has taught English in Malaysia knows, it is generally the case that students from the Peninsula universities, such as University of Malaya and Multimedia University, tend to have a better command of English, as well as better access to debate training and competition opportunities, of which there are many over there.

Also, it is often the case that many of the students in teams from Borneo universities, such as UNIMAS (Sarawak) and UMS (Sabah), are also from the Peninsula! So, what happens? You get a Borneo debate competition which is in reality a Pan-Malaysian debate competition!

It's rather like the English Premier League, where a great deal of the players and Managers are not English!!

So, to address this anomaly, the organisers are re-branding the Borneo Cup as the Borneo Open. Yes, it's Open, but the only thing Borneo about it seems to be the location!

I've got nothing against Peninsula students, and I'm not trying to get political with this, I just want to see more debate competitions and training opportunities in Sarawak and Sabah for young debaters to cut their teeth.

I would so much love to see the standard of English rise this side of the South China Sea, and debating is one of the best, and most enjoyable, ways in which this can be achieved.