A group of journalists from China, who have arrived in Malaysia to cover President Xi Jinping’s official state visit, were recently commended for their fluency in Bahasa Melayu.
A viral TikTok video posted by @husnaliangliang showed them dining at a nasi kandar eatery and placing their food and drink orders in Bahasa Melayu with a proficiency that sounded akin to native speakers.
According to the TikTok post, the journalists were in the country to interview Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in Putrajaya.
In the video, all of the journalists used Malaysian names. In the comments section, @husnaliangliang explained that the names were given to them by their Bahasa Melayu teachers.
One of the journalists, who studied at Universiti Putra Malaysia in 2006, said the food and drink she ordered “tastes like home”.
Netizens praised the reporters for their fluency in the national language, noting that they spoke Bahasa Melayu better than some Malaysians.
“They speak Bahasa Melayu better than the locals,” one user commented.
“Media practitioners from China are far more proficient in the national language compared to Malaysians. Aren’t Malaysians ashamed?” another remarked.
