(Petaling Jaya, Friday): The
time has come for Parliament in June to consider and
debate the abolition of quotas for bumiputra students for public
university entry following
the outstanding success of bumiputra students this year in the selection
system based completely on merit.
According
to the Higher Education Department director, Professor Hassan Said, the intake
of bumiputra students into public higher educational institutions, which
is based for the first time
on meritocracy, increased to 68.9 per cent this year for Sijil Tinggi
Persekolahan Malaysia (STPM) holders - higher by 13.9 per cent from the previous
quota system of 55:45 for bumiputra and non-bumiputra students.
If
Hassan Said is right about the outstanding success of the bumiputra students in
the selection system which is
completely based on merit and not influenced by any other extraneous factors,
then the bumiputra students must be congratulated on their attainments which
even better their non-bumiputra student counterparts
in their university entrance academic qualifications and achievements.
Although
the merit-based selection system results
in a 13.9 per cent drop for non-bumiputra students in public universities
from their quota of 45 per cent, giving
a shockingly low percentage of only 31.1%, the non-bumiputra students and
their parents have no complaints if the merit selection system is
completely above-board as they accept that it is in the larger national
interests
The
Higher Education Department, however, should be completely transparent and make
public the various criteria for the merit-based selection system
and it must be prepared to respond to all public queries about the
system.
Hassan
has attributed the outstanding results for the bumiputra students, which
exceeded all expectations, as due to the threat of abolition of the quota system
in spurring bumiputra students to work harder and achieve better grades.
This
is in fact the most powerful argument for the abolition of the quota system for
entry into public universities, not only because the original goal of the quota
system has been achieved but to ensure that bumiputra students continue to work
under the culture and pressure of
healthy competition for their own sake as well as that of the nation.
Parliament
in June should seriously consider and debate the question of the abolition fo
quota system for university students and
for this purpose, an all-party
parliamentary committee should be formed immediately to interact with the Higher
Education Department to get all available information not only on the
merit-based selection of university students this year but also for the past
three decades of the operation of the quota system.
(10/5/2002)