Gov't to allocate RM58m to TAR UC - Wee

The Finance Ministry has agreed to allocate RM58 million to Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (TAR UC), said MCA president Wee Ka Siong.

"I am delighted and thankful that Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz has taken the overall situation into account and rectified the situation caused by his predecessor Lim Guan Eng.

"Lim had suppressed TAR UC. I am thankful to the new minister for setting things right again," he said in a video clip uploaded to Facebook.

This RM58 million allocation included the balance of RM18 million which the Pakatan Harapan government pledged to channel to an education trust fund administered by TARCian Alumni Association (TAA).

Wee said the Finance Ministry would redirect the RM18 million to the Higher Education Ministry to be distributed to TAR UC.

He said the government also agreed to channel the remaining RM40 million to TAR UC instead via the education trust fund.

"He agreed that there is no need to allocate the money to TAR UC via a third party," he said.

Wee said Tengku Zafrul also agreed to reinstate the allocation of the annual matching grant given to TAR UC.

TAR UC was given a RM30 million matching grant in 2018. Lim had under Budget 2019 and Budget 2020 slashed government allocation for the MCA-owned TAR UC to RM5.5 million and RM1 million respectively.

The DAP secretary-general had said that the government would provide RM30 million to the institution if the MCA relinquished its ownership of TAR UC.

In December 2019, Lim said the government would allocate RM40 million to the education trust fund.

In an immediate response, former deputy education minister Teo Nie Ching pointed out that the Perikatan Nasional government did not increase the allocation to TAR UC.

She said TAR UC only obtained RM40 million after deducting the RM18 million which initially would be given to the education trust fund.

There was no increase in the allocation as TAR UC was given RM45.5 million in 2019 and the only difference is the party who manages the government allocation to TAR UC, in which Harapan had entrusted to TAA and Chinese NGOs leaders.

Teo, however, asked if PN will continue to allocate RM20 million to the Chinese primary schools as decided by the Harapan. - Mkini