PAS central committee will summon Kedah Menteri Besar Azizan Abdul Razak over the suspension of five students by the state-owned Kolej Universiti Insaniah under the Universities and University Colleges Act (UUCA).

NONE PAS deputy president Mohamad Sabu (left) said the party will seek an explanation from Azizan at the party’s next meeting, according to a Berita Harian report today.

“We must listen to his explanation first,” he was quoted as saying, adding that a decision will only be made after that.

PAS is scheduled to hold a central working committee meeting on Feb 12.

Meanwhile, Sinar Harian reported Azizan as saying that the five students were suspended under the Private Higher Educational Institutions Act 1996 (Act 555) and not under the UUCA.

“The two (acts) are different even though they are almost the same. I hope after this no parties will question the decision,” he was quoted as saying.

penang kedah timber logging azizan abdul razak 310708 02 The Act 555 and the Educational Institutions (Discipline) Act 1976 (Act 174) are laws similar to the UUCA but tailored for private universities and institutions of higher learning.

Azizan (right) had said that despite Pakatan Rakyat’s pledge to abolish UUCA, the coalition’s Buku Jingga manifesto is not the Quran and does not need to be followed entirely.

Last Thursday, former Universiti Islam Antarabangsa (UIA) lecturer Abdul Aziz Bari called on Azizan to join Barisan Nasional  for his pro-UUCA stance.

PKR communications director Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad has also expressed regret over the decision and has called on Pakatan to prevent a repeat of the incident.