YOURSAY 'The new undergraduates at Unisel should not be made into pawns in the Umnoputras' unprincipled attempts to wrest back control of Selangor.'

PTPTN halts loans to Universiti Selangor students

Disgusted: I suppose PTPTN (National Higher Education Fund) will now be dispensed to all those illegal immigrants whom they have given citizenship and made voters.

Perhaps the Selangor government should start a scholarship fund for Unisel (Universiti Selangor) students, of course with conditions, or otherwise it will be misused.

I thought all government institutions are apolitical and are supposed to be neutral. So what next? Pakatan supporters will not be given places in BN-controlled public universities?

The BN seems to be using every possible avenue to punish the Pakatan state government, even to the point of using students as pawns to gain advantage.

It's like cutting your nose to spite your face. After all, there may be some BN supporters' children on the list of applicants to Unisel as well.

Things have really got out of hand in their attempt to recapture Selangor. It only makes rakyat more resolved to get rid of them once and for all from Putrajaya.

Ksn: In other words, the students in this university applying for the PTPTN loans are not Malaysians, right?

Ruben: Pakatan came up with a proposal to give free education to all. Let me repeat, it is only a proposal.

PTPTN has the gall and the audacity to halt all student loans to one university (of course under the Selangor government jurisdiction). Sorry, PTPTN on what basis did you resort to this?

Umno-BN is so desperate that it is using all government machineries (which is illegal) to bring the opposition down.

How sad that Umno-BN and PTPTN have to stoop to such lows to threaten the students, who are future leaders of Malaysia. What a disgrace.

Odin: One doesn't even have to think why the loans have been frozen. One can also be quite certain that most of those who will get the loan are Malays.

One hopes that these Malay students will spread the news about the matter to their families and kampong folks so that their people will know how well Umno looks after their kind.

Onyourtoes: Okay, if PTPTN wants the state government to finance higher education, then let's have fiscal decentralisation. Let the state government collect income tax and other revenues, and we shall see who will be financing whom.

I am saying all these defiantly because I know under our constitution, finance and education are under the jurisdiction of the federal government.

So be reasonable, PTPTN. If you are unreasonable, others can behave likewise.

Malaysia ABU: Yes, Selangor can provide free education for all Selangorians, provided that Selangorians' taxes are all paid to the state government and only Selangor-born children are entitled to free university education. Okay or not, PM Najib Razak?

Jean Pierre: Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim is reckless in wanting to do away with PTPTN and asking student not to repay their loans.

PTPTN is senseless in denying loans to a Pakatan-controlled university, as though only Pakatan supporters enroll there.

But two wrongs don't make a right. This is a lose-lose situation really.

Paul Warren: This basically confirms how private education has become exorbitant due to students being granted these loans.

By withholding these loans to students going to any particular college, you kill that college even if their programmes are good.

Long established colleges offer programmes that today cost the student anything up to eight or more times what it used to cost. Indeed, PTPTN should be stopped across the board. Then only programmes that really equip student with job skills will be in demand.

At this time, everyone thinks he or she is degree material and borrows up to his/her nose to fund an education that equips him/her with nothing useful, except a debt beyond their capacity to repay.

Lim Chong Leong: This is another clear case of abuse of government machinery to strangle the people and blackmail them into obedience and subservience.

Tale of Two Cities: In order not to halt the education of the 1,000-odd students who have just enrolled, could the university start a private fund where we can donate for their studies?

Let's not make the students suffer due to some immature politicians making such a decision. If we can have the people's highway, we too can have the people's university. Just a thought, but willing to help.

DontPlayGod: Please remind Umno that government money is rakyat's money, irrespective of political affiliations or race.

Anonymous_3e86: This is a clear sign of desperation by BN. BN is trying to pin the blame on Pakatan on this issue. But these students will rebel and will vote against BN instead.

Students now form a huge percentage of new voters for the coming GE. BN is desperate. All indications are that BN will lose more seats than the last GE.

Najib is desperate to hang on to his seat in Putrajaya. He will do anything to retain his position.

Loyal Malaysian: Trust the Umnoputras to impose a discriminatory ban like this. They have not learnt that it is arbitrary actions like this that have caused many a thinking rakyat to turn their backs on the Umnoputras.

The new undergraduates at Unisel should not be made into pawns in the Umnoputras' unprincipled attempts to wrest back control of Selangor.

Anonyxyz: Maybe all the parents of the Unisel students shouldn't pay income tax and let the federal government come after them. Fight the case in court and test the waters.

Go to the courts and argue that since the government is absolving itself of its obligations to take care of their children, which is against the constitution, they will also go against the law by not paying income tax.

The Selangor government should hire a panel of lawyers to take up the case on behalf of the parents. See if Putrajaya will jail every single parent.

SMC77: How low can BN go? Are they going to ban students from going to school if their parents vote for Pakatan in the next GE? This is really petty and childish.

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