KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA - A single stream school system will not be implemented if the people are not for it, said Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

The Prime Minister said as long as Malaysians were not ready for such a change, the existing education system would be retained.

He acknowledged that the national education system started off with Malaysians of all races having the choice to opt for schools in any stream.

'If we want to change that (system) to have only one stream, it would require a big step in terms of policy.

'Is our society ready to be denied their rights of choosing their education streams?' he told reporters after attending Tenaga Nasional's 60th anniversary celebrations yesterday.

Najib said while some might feel that a single stream was the way towards unity, others might still want the right to choose.

'There is no final decision on the issue. As long as the people are not for it, we will not change the policy.

'What is the point of changing if it leads to disputes. A change is supposed to unite people, not create tension within society,' he said.

The suggestion for a single stream school system by historian and academician Prof Emeritus Tan Sri Khoo Kay Kim has drawn objections from the MCA and the MIC.

Khoo had suggested an end to the multiple stream school system to boost unity among children.