Bumi varsity quota not racist, says Dr M

Malaysiakini

14 December 2009

Keturunan Malaysia:

Please Tun (Dr Mahathir Mohamad), no one is saying we should not help the "poor" but what we are saying is why at the expense of those who are more than well-qualified but have to unfairly suffer from the lack of a level-playing field. Most are poor too but their only sin is because they are not "sons and daughters of the soil".

Ahmad Kamal:

(1) Affirmative action policies are temporary special measures as a matter of principle. (2) It is quite difficult to justify continuous affirmative action for an ethnic grouping that constitutes a majority of the population. (3) Are Malays and natives of Sabah/Sarawak equal in their bumi rights?

Some years ago when Tun was in government, there are already views that Malay support to university places should be restructured in terms of private financial support and not government support per se. Get back to the drawing board please. The 13 general election is on the horizon.

Jbss:

Mahathir has conveniently forgotten that it was because of this racist policy that prevented good non-Malay students from entering state-run universities/institutions so more private institutions were forced to be set up to cater for the growing demand for places of learning in higher institutions and at great expense to the non-Malay students.

The demand for places in private institutions has grown so much and enrolment has multiplied, this old cunning fox now uses this as the basis for the 'apartheid' policy which has been in place for decades!

Rationalise it in whichever way you like, it is official discrimination, racist, apartheid-like because it deprives other citizens (based on their ethnic origin) of equal opportunities to enjoy education at state-run institutions of higher learning financed by the taxpayers' money.

Kee Thuan Chye:

Not all non-Malay parents can afford to send their children to private universities. Many are forced to work harder to earn the money to provide higher education for their children. This has been their unenviable lot especially from the time Mahathir took over as PM. It's easy for him to talk; he does not know first-hand the plight of non-Malay parents.

Kgan:

"Mahathir added that the extra attention and opportunities given to the bumiputeras did not mean that the other races were sidelined."

This is like saying that the apartheid system in South Africa did not marginalise blacks. Non-Malay parents have to save and scrimp to send their children to private universities because opportunities in public universities are so lacking for them. Even if they can get in, they are given less desirable courses. Is this discrimination or not?

Mahathir, you bloody racist, the time when you can spew out some rubbish and expect it to be accepted wholesale by a fawning press is over. If you can't say anything right, keep your mouth shut and save whatever dregs of your tainted legacy is still left.

Doc:

The issue of bumi quota in the public universities has not been such a hot topic as in the past. Public perception of public universities are to mass produce graduates where quantity is important not quality.

Non-bumis over the years have realised the importance of a good education. They save their earnings to put their children into good and reputable universities (locally or overseas) for two reasons. The first is in ensuring their children are better qualified and have the edge when entering the job market, thus earning a higher salary. The second is for migration purposes.

Louis:

TDM said that the bumis cannot afford fees in private institution. He must be joking. Why must a bumi want to spend his own money when he could easily get scholarships? I am very much poorer than many Malays, but I managed to put my children through tertiary education with my meagre income.

I have witnessed with my own eyes, bumiputeras driving Mercs, BMWs, Volvos and Honda Accord are using scholarships to put their children to universities. I bear no grudges if such scholarships are given to poor Malays in the kampung.

The irony is that it is those rich Malays who are manipulating the political system so that they will enjoy those privileges while hoodwinking the poor in the kampung to support them.

Multi Racial:

How could a former PM talk like this? If we want to help those weak in their study, this is not the way. You will only make thing worse for them. Unfortunately there are those Malays who can compete with non-Malays anytime and anywhere but are now seen as part of those who were helped by the government in their education.

The time has come for the government to put things right. All the mistakes done by past administration has to be stopped before it is too late. Focus on quality and not quantity. Focus on Malaysians, and not just one race.

Boonpou:

If there is a level-playing field, do you think the private universities in Malaysia would have such high non-Malay enrolments. Do you think non-Malay parents enjoy borrowing money from whichever sources to send their children to these private universities?

It is sad that a man of your age are still trapped, to borrow a phrase from the late Syed Hussein Alatas, in this "myth of the lazy natives [Malays]" mentality. Of course, we know that you are not entirely that stupid or have gone senile. All along you have capitalised on this myth to advance your own political career and racist agenda.

At the end of the day, how much longer could you indulge yourself in such immoral agenda? Most decent Malaysians are no longer haunted by this colonial myth. We do not need to have a Malaysian Oxford, Cambridge or Harvard in order to feel that we can think.

Foo Wy Len:

Dr M, please explain that to my daughter who has all As in her SPM, and yes, she is in a private university, and yes, every single sen is paid by me from my saving as a poor school teacher!