Follow UM and cut fees, Syed Saddiq urges varsities

 

Universiti Malaya has cut its service fees for three semesters because students conduct their studies online.

PETALING JAYA: Former youth and sports minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman has called on other universities to emulate Universiti Malaya which has announced discounts on its fees for  students forced to conduct their studies online.

UM said it had decided to reduce university service fees by RM120 per semester for three semesters, in view of the pandemic which has forced classes to go virtual.

It said the discount will cost the university as much as RM2.7 million for each semester and will involve more than 22,000 students.

Syed Saddiq, who recently registered his new youth-party Muda, lauded UM’s announcement, saying it was an empathetic decision and helped reduce the burdens of students as well as their family members.

In a Facebook post today, he said it was only right for university facility fees to be written off since students would not be able to make use of the services.

He said varsity students have been particularly affected by the pandemic, citing the higher education ministry’s ever-changing decisions and the fact that the Bantuan Prihatin Nasional 2.0 aid did not apply to students.

“I’m sure that many families out there will feel relieved because at least there is some relief provided by UM,” he said today. - FMT