See you in court, Kedah rep tells higher education ministry over ‘backdoor’ claim

PETALING JAYA: A Kedah assemblyman is prepared to go to court to defend his claim that public universities were selling spots to the wealthy and that tens of thousands of students had entered through “backdoor” routes.

A defiant Haim Hilman Abdullah also said he would not retract his claim.

“If the higher education ministry wants to take the matter to court, I will come prepared with data, facts and evidence,” the Jitra assemblyman said in a statement tonight.

Haim also said he was not attacking public universities when he raised the matter but was merely calling into question the fairness, transparency and equitable access to educational opportunities for Malaysians, particularly youths from B40 and M40 households.

Last night, the higher education ministry said it was mulling legal action against Haim over claims he made in a speech on June 13 which had been streamed on Facebook.

The ministry said the allegations undermined the reputation and credibility of the country’s entire higher education system, as well as the thousands of students who had gained admission through legitimate channels.

Last year, Haim, of PAS and a former Universiti Utara Malaysia vice-chancellor, also alleged that international students were prioritised over Malaysians in admission to research universities.

He claimed that Malaysia’s five research universities offered 180,000 places, of which 21% were filled by international students.

The higher education ministry also denied his claim, with director-general Azlinda Azman saying the assemblyman had “repeatedly misled the public” about the higher education policy on international students.