SINTOK: The quota system for Bumiputera students should be retained to maintain the racial balance in local public institutions of higher learning.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said any effort to do away with the system would lead towards imbalance of Malay students' enrolment into certain programmes in the universities.
"I wish to point out on a few principles in the (Federal) Constitution which guaranteed the opportunities for the Malays and Bumiputera children to be given a space to compete... this we will maintain.
"If we do away with that now, we will see the disparities which had taken place in Universiti Malaya during 1970s and 1960s.
"In the engineering faculty, the number of Malay student was zero, in medical faculty - only 12 per cent, hence the late Royal Prof Ungku Abdul Aziz Abdul Hamid and the (Education) Ministry at the time made an effort... to help the Malay students so that they are able to compete," Anwar said in a 'Temu Anwar' dialogue session with students at Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) main campus here today.
However, Anwar acknowledged that despite retention of the system, efforts should be taken to ensure that the non-Malay/Bumiputera students with excellent results would get a fair chance and not being denied from securing a place in local universities.
"I agreed this quota system should be retained but we need to find other means to provide more spaces for the non-Bumiputera students so that they are not seen as being sidelined," he said.
He added that should the government do away with the quota policy now, it would create tension and turned into political polemics.
Anwar added that he has informed the Education Minister Fadhlina Sidek that the quota system should be retained (for matriculation programmes) and at the same time, to open the space for other non-Bumiputera students with excellent results to further their studies.
Meanwhile, Anwar claimed that he sensed that several opposition leaders were anxious by his move to engage with university students.
Anwar said his tour to local universities was meant to hear the voices and aspirations of the students.
"He (they) said why should Anwar having a dialogue, I should be focusing on my duty (as the Prime Minister). Monday (to) Friday I work at the office, Saturday (and) Sunday I go to the ground, what is wrong with me listening to the grouses of our students? I can't comprehend (their argument).
"For example when I attended a progamme (dialogue) in Langkawi, one of the students raised issue about the e-Belia cash aid distribution, so the next day when I entered the office, I ordered for the (cash aid) to be channelled before Hari Raya Aidiladha.
"There was another suggestion, concerning internship programme, it was said that the interns were not paid, it was a Form Six student in Kelantan who raised the issue.
"The student's voice had touched me, so (I) raised the issue during a gathering with Security Commission, the Bourse and corporate figures in Kuala Lumpur, I told them to listen the grouses raised by the youngsters who wish to be compensated with something worthy of their work," he said.
Recently, Perikatan Nasional national election director Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor reminded Anwar to focus on his main duties as the Prime Minister and Finance minister instead of going down to universities to woo the support of the young voters.