In short, ‘certot’ will be used
Maszlee: Acronym for ‘cerita kontot’ has no bad connotations
PUTRAJAYA: The word certot will continue to be used for a short story writing competition organised by the Education Ministry, says Dr Maszlee Malik.
The word, which is not listed in the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka dictionary, means a story that is less than 500 words.
The Education Minister said over a Facebook post yesterday that it was an acronym for cerita kontot (very short story) and had no “bad connotations” as perceived by netizens who slammed Dr Maszlee on social media.
The “certot” writing contest is part of the government’s 61st Merdeka Day celebrations.
Members of the public are invited to submit stories no longer than 200 words based on the theme “Sayangi Malaysiaku”.
A post about the patriotic contest was uploaded on Dr Maszlee’s Facebook page last Saturday.
Netizens were quick to flood the post with comments on how inappropriate and “funny” the word sounded.
Some also alleged that the use of the word showed a drop in standards at the ministry.
The post was subsequently removed but was uploaded again on Sunday without any changes.
On another matter, Dr Maszlee said it was “interesting” that Terengganu was chosen as the venue for an English immersion programme and that one month was not enough to learn the language.
Instead, he suggested that these programmes be carried out for at least three months.
He added that he wanted similar programmes to be carried out for Bahasa Malaysia by local universities for foreign students as well.
“The EIM (English Immersion Mobility) programme offers broadbased benefits to students who are not only keen on learning a new language but who also want an international experience – to learn from an array of different cultural perspectives and values,” he said after launching the closing ceremony of the English Immersion Mobility Programme (EIM 2018) with Turkish students yesterday.
The EIM is organised by Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, in collaboration with the Turkey Youth Foundation.
A total 43 students from 35 universities in Turkey spent a month attending classroom events and experiencing Malaysian culture in Terengganu this year.
The EIM programme offers broad-based benefits to students. Dr Maszlee Malik