YOURSAY 'It is okay to provide free education provided we eliminate corruption altogether and students entering varsities must attain a minimum satisfactory pass.'

PTPTN will bankrupt us if not halted, says Rafizi

Ghkok: PKR strategy director Rafizi Ramli's suggestions are sensible. It's a good policy. We must get away from using loans as a solution to everything.

If the cost of education is an issue, then the government must drill down into that issue and find out the cause. Just increasing the funding alone is not the solution.

The cost of private college education in Malaysia is exorbitant in comparison to other countries, and that's where a huge chunk of the PTPTN (National Higher Education Fund) loans is going.

Ksn: Yes, Rafizi, the PTPTN loan is not a sustainable project which will do long-term financial damage to the country. It has to be critically re-evaluated quickly.

Jean Pierre: If there is one aspect of Pakatan Rakyat's policies that I am against, it has to be regarding the PTPTN loan. There have been so many half-baked, unqualified students who entered private colleges costing us tonnes of money, and they don't have to pay back their loans?

And what about those who have paid back? When the PTPTN is abolished, the new entrants to private colleges would have to pay from their own pockets. Doesn't that also create a lot of ill-will? Don't Pakatan policymakers sense a strong whiff of irony in all these?

Iloveallmalaysians: So the answer is free education? Rafizi is a cunning but stupid young turk. He has announced the PTPTN's failure, which many agree, but says nothing about the free education.

The United States, which is by far the biggest educator, knows that students can't and won't pay, so to give them free education is to have a pipe flowing out into the ocean.

It is a scenario where everyone can get an education - smart or stupid - you can go for free, like a buffet, take all you can't eat.

Sadly free education cannot be provided as it will bankrupt any nation, as each year billions must be poured in. But with the loans, only the people who know they can afford it will go for it.

Awakened: Many people may not be aware that 45 percent of government revenue comes from petroleum. If countries which do not have this natural resource can balance their government budget, our 45 percent petroleum revenue is actually a bonus.

This bonus should be able to fund education, medical and other infrastructure developments. In a way, free education, medical benefits and tolls are possible if we study how other countries like South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore manage their budgets.

Where has this petroleum bonus gone to? It has gone to fund approved permits (AP), cost overruns and ballooning costs of projects, funding non-feasible projects like the National Feedlot Corporation (NFC), rescuing Perwaja Steel, paying for the ruling party's forex losses, etc.

These petroleum bonuses, if properly used, could benefit the rakyat enormously. We may not need GST (goods and services tax) or even personal income taxes.

Anonymous_3e21: Unfortunately for Rafizi, not many people can understand the situation since they have been brainwashed by Umno.

Anonymous_40f4: The present Umno government is already robbing the rakyat of RM50 as government tax every year on every credit card for doing nothing. Soon the thieving government may increase this amount to RM100, and it's daylight robbery.

Johannes: With all the goodies given out by Prime Minister Najib Razak from our tax money, I predict that in the coming years, Malaysia will go bankrupt. There is no accountability nor transparency. Najib and his lot are playing Santa Claus.

Mushiro: When Rafizi points out some of the serious mistakes of the current government, none are willing to accept or debate with him.

They will simply sweep this under the carpet claiming these are lies. The truth is more people believe Rafizi than Najib or any Umno leader.

Hbasill: It is okay to give free education provided we eliminate corruption altogether and students entering varsities must attain a minimum satisfactory pass, thereby ensuring government funds going to education will be well utilised.

First, let the varsities that are not up to standard be closed and varsity staff who are non-performers be ushered out of these universities - this will save millions in revenue. Drastic changes are needed before free education is to be considered in Malaysia.

Awakened: In the 60s and 70s, education in Britain, Australia and New Zealand were free or at least almost free. Many Malaysians sent their children to these countries.

The Malaysian public universities are also almost free. I graduated from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in the 80s and I paid about RM700 per year, which is even lower than kindergarten fees.

In fact, till today, our full-fledged public universities (more than 10 now) are very affordable, which I can say is almost free. The students need to pay only about RM2,000 per year.

What is expensive are those private institutions like Monash, Nottingham, KDU, Help, etc, which charge between RM30,000 to RM40,000 per year for engineering courses.

Those semi-government universities like Petronas University are charging about RM20,000 per year. The real answer is not 100 percent free education, but affordable education.

The government should be able to subsidise the semi-government universities and make them more affordable. But for those who had borrowed to go to private colleges, we must collect the loans back.

NewMalaysia: Rafizi is someone who talks sense and facts, unlike Umno leaders who only propagate lies. They only dare to accuse Pakatan of all sorts of shortcomings, but never allow them a chance to rebut the claims in the mainstream media. Why?

Because all they can do is slander to cover up their wrongdoing such as corruption - imagine with RM30 billion, we can build many universities and have the best lecturers for our undergraduates.

Instead, they have to borrow from the PTPTN to pay for expensive private college fees, so that those colleges' boards of directors can earn a handsome profit.

Anonymous #70881335: The poor management of this education fund epitomises the poor quality of management of the BN government. One way or another, BN has to go.

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