The Tunku Abdul Rahman Association of New Youth (Tarany) has urged that the government reinstate the National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) loan waiver for first-class honours graduates from private universities.
Speaking at the Higher Education Ministry office after handing over a memorandum today, Tarany president Lee Wing Yung said the government should not discriminate against graduates based on their higher education institution.
“We're here to submit a memorandum because recently, PTPTN announced that first-class degree holders from private universities cannot have their PTPTN loans waived.
”This policy is unfair for our private university (students), not everyone comes from a very wealthy family or a rich background.
“I think the government should not be discriminating against students from private universities,” he said.
The joint memorandum, which was also signed by New Generation of Universiti Malaya (NewGen) and Voice of Youtharian (VOY), urged the government to reinstate the PTPTN loan waiver for first-class graduates across all universities, protect educational equity, and strengthen support systems for lower-income students enrolled in private institutions.
Higher Education Minister Zambry Abd Kadir announced last October that the government will be reviewing the criteria for the PTPTN loan repayment exemption.
He said the government needs to reassess the definition and standards of “first-class” honours to ensure a fairer and more transparent implementation.
According to Zambry, the exemption has been temporarily suspended to allow the Higher Education Ministry time to re-evaluate the terms and conditions of the policy.
Zambry stressed that the policy of granting exemptions to first-class graduates will resume once the review and evaluation process is completed next year.
Review timeline too long
Lee, who graduated less than a month ago with a first-class degree in journalism, said the year-long timeline is too long, claiming that he felt sidelined by the abrupt policy change, noting that he had worked hard specifically to qualify for the PTPTN waiver.
“This is my goal when I finish my degree because I know that if I study hard, I have a chance to ‘win’ this PTPTN (exemption).
“Unfortunately, this sudden change of policy makes me feel like I’m discriminated against by the government because they didn’t really value our efforts,” he said.
Lee also denied the assumption that all private university students come from a rich background, citing that many were pushed to seek private education due to the limited capacity in public universities.
“The standard of PTPTN (exemption) should be based on the academic performance or family background, not based on the type of institutions that you studied for,” he added. - Mkini
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