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World-class police,  world-class national integrity system, global competitiveness and world-class universities will be the four   major DAP  agendas  for  the forthcoming parliamentary meeting starting on Monday


Media Statement
by
Lim Kit Siang

(Ipoh, Saturday): World-class police, world-class national integrity system, global competitiveness and world-class universities will be the four  major DAP  agendas  for  the forthcoming parliamentary meeting starting on Monday.

This is why for the 14-day parliamentary meeting ending on July 12, I had submitted three  separate parliamentary items on the Police Royal Commission Report:

  • An oral question ranked No. 4  to be answered by the Prime Minister on Monday asking for “the status of implementation of the 125 recommendations of the Report of the Royal Commission to enhance the operation and management of the Royal Malaysian Police”.
     
  • A motion which reads: “That the House COMMENDS  the Chairman and members of the Royal Commission to enhance the operations and management of the Royal Malaysian Police for its Report and RESOLVES  to establish a Select Committee to oversee the implementation of its 125 recommendations to transform the Royal Malaysian Police into an efficient, clean, trustworthy,  world-class and  21st century police service which respects human rights.”
  • A  private member’s bill, viz,  the Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) Bill, which is adopted in toto from the Police Royal Commission Report, which had drafted the bill for such a public oversight agency over police misconduct and complaints. If the Government is prepared to table such a IPCMC bill, I will  withdraw my private member’s bill.

On the crackdown against corruption to create a world-class national integrity system in Malaysia and on global competitiveness,  I have submitted the following two questions for next week’s Parliament:

  • To ask the Prime Minister to state the number of (i) Cabinet Ministers; (ii) Mentris Besar/Chief Ministers; (iii) police officials; (iv) public officials who have declared assets in excess of (a) RM10 million; (b) 30 million; (c) RM50 million; and (iv) RM100 million.
     
  • To ask the Finance Minister the reasons why Malaysia has fallen 12 places from 16th to 28th ranking in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2005, losing for the first time in international competitiveness to Thailand and the government’s response to this latest development.

I have posed two questions next week on the crisis of higher education in Malaysia, as highlighted by the University of Malaya falling 71 places behind the University of Singapore in the global ranking of the World’s 200 Best Universities of The Times Higher Education Supplement (THES)  in November 2004, ranked No. 89 and No. 18 respectively, although both universities are this year celebrating their 100-year anniversary. 

The two questions are:

  • To ask the Minister for Higher Education the action taken by his Ministry in connection with complaints by the University of Malaya Academic Staff Association (PKAUM) on (i) irregularities in the academic promotion exercise; (ii) tampering with examination marks; and (iii) corruption in colleges.
     
  • To ask the Minister for Higher Education what university reforms had been undertaken to ensure that local universities can become the centre to create “towering Malaysian personalities” to enhance Malaysia’s competitiveness.

It is shocking that the University of Malaya Vice Chancellor Prof Datuk Dr. Hashim Yaacob could state two days ago  that he is in the dark over allegations of favouritism in academic promotion exercise and examination marks tampering, as PKAUM had reiterated  that these issues had been repeatedly brought to the attention of the Vice Chancellor.

The Higher Education Minister, Datuk Dr. Shafie Salleh should tell the truth when answering these two questions next Wednesday and Thursday, as he would have to bear personal responsibility for whatever he said in Parliament on these two matters and cannot claim that he is a mere postman or spokesman  of the Vice Chancellor of the University of Malaya.

 

(18/06/2005)      

                                                       


*  Lim Kit Siang, Parliamentary Opposition Leader, MP for Ipoh Timur and Strategic Planning Commission Chairman