Men of Words

UiTM, Malaysia in Turmoil

Malaysia in Turmoil.

Last Sunday, Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim proposed to allow Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) to be opened to non-Bumiputeras. He proposed that 10% of new student intakes be reserved for foreign students and non-bumis. UiTM has traditionally been set up as a public funded university for ONLY Bumiputeras.

Abdul Khalid has subsequently been barraged by various powerful groups including Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, UiTM’s vice-chancellor Professor Datuk Seri Ibrahim Abu Shah, Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi & more than 5000 UiTM students.

PM Badawi has publicly ticked off Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim for proposing UiTM to be open to non-bumis and foreigners.

In a nutshell, Prof Ibrahim has labelled Abdul Khalid as being ‘an unethical and unprofessional leader’, as well as a person who ‘betrays his own race’. He has also warned of the consequences of bringing up this sensitive issue again, stressing that ‘about 120000 UiTM students and 350000 of its alumni were prepared to stage a nationwide protest.’

As quoted on www.nst.com.my (The online version of New Straits Times, one of Malaysia’s leading newspapers), ‘I do not want a Malay Leader to be used by other people to stab their own race’. -Minister Hamidi

Minister Hamidi has effectively accused Abdul Khalid of being a back-stabber and his proposal to open 10% of UiTM’s places to be politically motivated, aimed at garnering support in the coming election.

Led by Luqmann Ulhakim Mohamad Idris, more than 5000 UiTM students marched to the Selangor State Secretariat to hand over a memorandum of protest over Abdul Khalid’s proposal to reserve 10% of UiTM’s intakes for non-bumis and foreign students. According to www.nst.com.my ‘They marched half a kilometer to Bangunan Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah, singing the university song UiTM di Hatiku. They held banners and placards with various declarations: “Jangan Rampas Hak Kami” (Do not seize our rights), “Selamatkan UiTM”‘ (Save UiTM) & “UiTM di Hatiku”‘ (UiTM in our hearts).’ The students were unable to meet Abdul Khalid as he was in a meeting elsewhere. Tensions escalated when Luqmann was not allowed into Abdul Khalid’s office to submit the memorandum. It was finally handed to the Menteri Besar’s news officer Hasri ABU Hassan.

Is nothing being done about the racial bias so evident in Malaysia?

After all, ALL Malaysians contribute to the economy, certainly not only Malays and not only Bumis. Have the people who spoke out against Abdul Khalid ever wondered how UiTM is being funded? Well, UiTM is being funded by the taxes paid by ALL Malaysians, regardless or race or religion.

Why should the intellectually superior Chinese and Indians pay taxes if they cannot even get equal educational opportunities? Do the Bumis really feel threatened by a mere 10%? If the bulk of Bumis cannot even deal with 10% of competition from foreigners at tertiary level, how will they compete in the workforce? How will the current batch of Bumis, with their assumed rights and benefits compete with other Malaysians of different races, much less other powerhouses like China & India?

What Malaysia needs is a total reform of its governance in over for the country to progress and develop faster. Furthermore, why is action taken only against Abdul Khalid for a less than harmful proposal, and none taken against the 5000 or so students who protested? Should these students be subsequently expelled for ‘undesirable behaviour’ and will they be dealt with by the UiTM board for being involved in street protests?

Hmm…another point of consideration. Who were the earliest owners of the land? It was the Orang Aslis who predated Malays by thousands of years. It is presumptuous of Malays to claim that they were the original owners of Malaya!

Just my 2 cents worth.