The Tengku Mahkota of Johor said the issue involving Dato Bentara Luar secondary school must be avoided to maintain harmony and unity among the people.

“These actions are not in line with ‘Bangsa Johor’ that promotes unity of all races under one identity for all Johoreans,” the crown prince said in a Facebook post.

Tunku Ismail stressed that schools must be a place to encourage unity, not division, in the state.

He said he had informed school principal Abdul Razak Hamid and the National Registration Department (JPN) in Johor that “this incident should never have happened and it must never happen again in any school in Johor”.

Tunku Ismail had granted an audience to Razak, Batu Pahat district officer Ismail Abu, JPN deputy director Sahilon Abdul Halim and district education officer Suhaimi Ismail earlier today.

A report had said that according to the note originally issued by the school on the registration for co-curricular activities, the students’ choices for sports were limited to their race.

Football and sepak takraw were open for “Malay males only”, while the basketball club was reserved for “Chinese males and females”.

Meanwhile, hockey was open only to students living in dorms and only Malay girls could join the netball club.

Sports like handball, bowling, petanque and badminton, however, were open to all.

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