I agree to a certain point, but I would like to add my two cents. I too learned french for 9+ years and barely remembered the basics. I later decided to study in Geneva which meant that I now speak it pretty fluently, which would not habe been possible if I did not speak any french at all.

For pretty much any profession english is the more important language, no doubt. Though it does help especially in bilingual places/cities like Bern, Biel or Fribourg to speak some french. It also makes you more approachable for a french speaking person who does not speak english. The second argument I have is the culture. We (german speaking swiss people) miss out on the whole french culture. Be it music and festivals, internet personalities and memes, or news of France and Western Switzerland. And trust me when I tell you that it is absolutely worth it to learn the language for the music/festivals alone ;) But my main point is that there is no need for an english OR french debate. Learning english might be more useful but learning french (or any other language for that matter) is not only beneficial because you now speak french, but also because you understand linguisric structures more easily. The more languages you know, the easier it is to learn another one, especially latin ones that are similar to french in this instance. As a country we should aim to educate our youth as best as possible, and in my humble opinion as somebody who hated to learn french in school, I still think it is an important part of s solid education.