MCA president Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong has been accused by detractors of playing the race card and politicising the matter when he came forward to champion the fate of 11 Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) 10A top scorers who were left out of matriculation places.
This is despite the Education Ministry having announced on April 8 that a total of 6,717 students who scored 10As and above in the 2025 SPM examination will be eligible for automatic entry into the 2026/2027 matriculation session.
The move is aimed at recognising academic excellence while providing greater access to pre-university education.
“However, the MCA Youth secretariat still received 11 complaints from 10A top scorers who were left out as this raised serious questions about this so-called ‘automatic; system,” queried the five-term Ayer Hitam MP.
“What went wrong? Isn’t an automatic mechanism supposed to be foolproof? How could such omissions happen?”
Wee further expressed concern that the complaints received by MCA Youth may only be the tip of the iceberg “as other political parties have also stepped in to assist candidates with their appeal process”.
‘Submit names for review’
“We urge the government to honour its commitment and to rectify or correct the oversight within the next few days so that those SPM 10A top pupils who were left out can rightfully secure their places,” he stressed.
Editor’s Note: While Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has reiterated that the Cabinet has agreed to automatic placement for pupils who obtained 10 As in their 2025 SPM, the 90% admission quota for Bumiputera pupils would be maintained.
“In this matter, the brightest children of wealthy urban families aren’t marginalised while the 90% quota is retained to prevent the widening gap between the rich and the poor,” he justified when speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony of the Terengganu Matriculation College recently.
In recounting that there was also a controversy last year over whether “A-” counted as an “A” following which he was heavily criticised by many DAP leaders for “politicising” the matriculation issue, efforts by the former transport minister eventually bore fruits when “260 top 10A students succeed in their appeals and I was truly happy for them”.
“The government eventually relented and upheld the original definition of 10A which includes A+, A, and A-, and provided the necessary placements,” revealed Wee.
“Despite the harsh criticism I received, I still believe it was worth it. Without delay, I call on the government to immediately admit the 11 affected SPM top pupils as this was a Cabinet-level commitment.”
In a reaction to Wee’s FB post, the Education Ministry’s Matriculation Programme division has urged Wee “to submit the names of the 11 pupils to enable us to review their status”.
“Pupils who have requested a review of their 2025 SPM results can review their matriculation offer starting May 6,” it added.
- focus malaysia
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