The spiritual leader of PAS Nik Aziz Nik Mat has blamed universities for producing people who commit bribery, adultery, sodomy and drug abuse, said a report today.

Nik Aziz, who is also chief minister of Kelantan, was quoted by the New Straits Times as saying universities focused too much on academic and development issues, and too little on moral studies.

"Universities have produced so many problems. Graduates who become government officers, politicians are bribe-takers... we have (read about) them in the newspapers," he said.

"Not all graduates become thugs but the number keeps rising."

Senseless animals

Nik Aziz, a graduate of India's Darul Uloon University of Deoband and the Al-Azhar University in Cairo, said it was baffling that with more universities being established, more people were turning into "senseless animals".

Universities would continue to produce criminals unless they placed more emphasis on moral education, he added.

Nik Aziz is known for his controversial remarks, which recently included blaming women wearing lipstick for encouraging rapists and television wrestling shows for growing violence among the country's youths.

PAS, which rules Kelantan and also neighbouring Terengganu state, has been at the forefront of pushing for strict syariah criminal law that prescribes amputation and death by stoning for lawbreaking Muslims.

Muslims account for 60 percent of Malaysia's 23 million population but syariah law has been opposed by members of the large ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities.

Syariah law covers civil matters such as divorce for Malaysian Muslims but is not part of the criminal code under the federal government. - AFP