I was totally flabbergasted when I read that the Higher Education Ministry is planning to send jobless graduates to work overseas. I can't begin to describe how bizarre or foolish this fantasy thinking is.

What makes the minister think that overseas companies or organisations would be interested in Malaysian graduates who can't even get jobs in their own country? Has he been listening and take note of the research results and arguments as to why these graduates are unemployable in the first place?

If these graduates cannot communicate or speak a second language like English, how would he or she stand a better chance of being employed overseas? If these graduates can't find their way around in their home country Malaysia, how would they find their way in a foreign country? How would foreign companies react that they are being offered a group of rejects to choose from?

Companies worldwide spent a fortune finding, identifying and retaining the right candidates for their organisations. They only recruit the best. Why would they waste their fortune on our fantasy. And where is the research or arguments that this plan could be made to work against this prevailing background?

I have no intention of demeaning Malaysian graduates, but we have to be realistic when coming up with plans and policies. This one would not only ended up as a failure, we would also have squandered our resources that could have been spent in a more effective and sensible programmes.

Dealing with foreign companies are expensive and dangerous for those who are ill-equipped. I have seen this from close quarters and saw money going down the drain from failed projects like this becoming a norm and not the exception. How much money are we willing to waste on this one before someone had the sense to see it for what it is, a fantasy?

I hope these ministers do remember once a while that the money they were entrusted with are not their own to be spend on their fantasy and grand white elephants but actually belong to the hard-working Malaysians.