I would like to endorse the views of Ahmad Sobri with regards to the state of affairs at Universiti Malaya. I think Ahmad hit the nail on the head when he pointed out that the present situation in the university is the result of self-indulgence and a lack of accountability.

In a developing country, second chances should be given out very sparingly. This is to avoid giving the impression that failure and wastage of meagre resources are acceptable. Ahmad was correct in seeing the pioneer academics as disciplinarians.

Having standards means being exacting. Promotions that are not based on merit simply mean that the leadership in the university will breed mediocrity. Universiti Malaya should be at par with the National University of Singapore but the reality speaks volumes.

Now, a lot of local academics will cry foul and say that they cannot possibly meet such high standards. Perhaps there is some truth for the sciences but not in the arts. In the age of the Internet, there is no reason why one cannot bring one's ideas and research up-to-date.

Then they will play the nationalist card. 'We are victims of an insidious global conspiracy to keep us down'. The only people keeping Malaysians down are the same nationalists who have been promoting their friends at the expense of the country's needs.

But the real predicament for UM is where will it go from here? Where will Rafeah Salim, UM's first woman vice-chancellor, bring the university to? It is a very difficult task but I think she may be on the right track since she decided to drop the word 'premier' from the university's mission statement. Not relying on past laurels means that the present academics will have to work much harder and on very little salary.

But to achieve real change, UM has to do away with deadwood, usually senior staff who are not of international standards. There must also be accountability. In the National University of Singapore, an academic who does not complete his or her PhD studies will have to repay the university for its sponsorship.

But ultimately, it is the students who will make a difference. Most students do not even realise that they are being short-changed by professors who do not or are not able to open new ways of thinking for them. Such 'kampung' academics have no business in a university, whether in Malaysia or elsewhere.

Ahmad was also right when he said that many of these academics are not aware of what is happening outside their little worlds. I would like to add that Malaysian students on scholarship overseas are equally solipsistic.

They are meek, highly unimpressive and at times, I don't think they know why they are doing at their university. To think that these people will be returning home to teach is unimaginable. Why do they pass? A foreign academic once said that if they do any damage, it is to their own country.

An academia that is compromised and that lacks any shred of meritocracy will lead to a society that is apathetic and self-indulgent. Will this state of things ever change? That is truly up to Malaysians - those who want a future that is.