COMMENT I was born in Teluk Anson (now known as Teluk Intan) but spent my childhood and early schooldays in Kampar. I recall the days when I would wake up at 5am in order to catch the first bus to Ipoh so I could attend Form Six classes at the Anglo-Chinese Secondary School there.

After school, I would take the afternoon bus back to Kampar. By the time I reached home, I would be exhausted, and without friends to discuss school work with.

After spending more than 30 years in Kuala Lumpur, it was indeed welcome news to know a university would take shape in Kampar.

utar kampar I started working with Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (Utar) students way back in 2005 when I decided to concentrate on completing my doctorate full time. Every Monday without fail, I would drive 35km to Utar to meet the students.

For me, real gratification came from successfully involving students in community work. With Utar's move to Kampar, this incentive was transferred to there, too.

It was a marvelous relationship dealing with the university at the dean's level. The reason was clear. The dean knew what he wanted to achieve for both the students and the donor (me, the social worker).

The lecturers only needed to get the dean's approval to kick-off projects and his permission for usage of resources. The donor was able to achieve her objective of engaging students to work with the community.

As for the dean, satisfaction came from seeing the students possessing valuable project work in their portfolios when they go out looking for jobs upon graduation. And these students were often rewarded with good starting salaries based on their real life hands-on experience.

Misplaced priorities

But does the president or the chairman of the Board of Trustees feel the same? After five years of working with Utar, I had to justify to the new administration that my small award had been accepted by the University Senate.

This tells me that certain people in Utar prioritised administrative tasks to real benefits that the students received.

Since it is unthinkable that the deans and lead lecturers who were in charge of the projects would not have reported such activities in their briefings to the new administration, it implies that the new administration does not trust these academicians.

It could also imply that the new administration does not welcome external assistance.

What constitutes the administration in a university? The vice-chancellors are held responsible for the performance of universities, both public and private. Gone are the days of total government funding for universities.

university students multiracial Unlike Kolej Tunku Abdul Rahman (Ktar), Utar is a private university. We are all aware that Huaren Holdings funds the larger part of Utar's annual operational expenditure. Huaren Holdings is the investment arm of MCA.

However, one must not forget that MCA leaders-of-the-day are only caretakers of the funds in Huaren Holdings. The annual donation from Huaren Holdings should be treated just like funds from other donors, big or small, whether in cash, kind or merely effort.

The paramount key in the Donor's Bill of Rights, a set of internationally accepted norms in managing public donations, is the one below:

"To be assured their gifts will be used for the purpose(s) for which they were given".

Spirit of volunteerism

The spirit of volunteerism and commitment to social work is not about expecting returns for the donor. Utar is not the result of efforts of a few politicians who hold/held positions in the party. Although Utar was established in 2001, it is the sequel to Ktar's creation in 1964.

Political leadership is not about individual power and span of control. The crux lies in making decisions on behalf of the entity they represent and the citizens who live in it. In this case, they are the stakeholders of Utar - the students and all those people who have hopes placed in it.

A university, as defined by Jawaharlal Nehru, stands for humanism and must discharge its duty to the nation and the people. A university is not a kitchen for a political party to dish out tea today to one faction, and then spaghetti to a different faction the next day.

The head of the funding committee of a university should not be a politician, especially one who also holds three or four other positions in the party. Appointment to such a position should not be the outcome of a promissory note at a party election.

A university has the duty to produce professionals and Utar has done so since its inception. But if Utar aspires to be one of the many well-run universities, then politicians and all political influence must be removed from its administration.

Start by bringing in professionals to restructure the university in order to make it as competitive as possible. What used to be a statement representing a cause may soon diffuse into oblivion if it loses its competitive edge.

 

DR DAPHNE LOKE is currently pursuing a PhD in Development Studies (Political Science).