Students submit memo to Najib

FRIDAY, APRIL 20, 2012 - 14:12
by Andrew Sagayam (Malay Mail)

PUTRAJAYA: A memorandum requesting Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to explain why the National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) was not converted from loans to scholarships despite their good results, was handed over by DAP Kampung Tunku state assemblyman Lau Weng San and six university and college students to the Prime Minister’s Office here yesterday.

Lau said the authorities were required to explain to students what went wrong.

“The students have the right to know and should be given an explanation. They feel it unfair as they too achieved results that make them eligible for the scholarships,” he said.

On Wednesday, Taiping MP Nga Kor Ming of DAP said that 8,000 first class graduates between 2005 and 2010 were unable to convert their PTPTN loans to scholarships despite their ostanding results. Nga said students who obtained first-class honours between July 1, 2005 and 2010 did not enjoy the conversion but only those who obtained such results from 1997 to 2005 were able to convert their loans to scholarships. 

PTPTN was started in 1997 when the government came up with the policy to corporatise higher education institutions especially local universities.