Perkasa has criticised Umno's plan to expand and refurbish the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur, which also hosts the party's headquarters.

Perkasa's Youth wing said the expansion plan, which includes the construction of a 70-storey building, was untimely, amid this uncertain economic times.

"In such a situation, development that benefits the people should be prioritised.

"Of late, people have had to battle the rising costs of living," Perkasa Youth vice-chief Mohamad Shahiran Safwan Che Mohd Asemari said today.

An example of this hardship, Shahiran Safwan said, was how some 150 Malaysian students in Egypt were unable to pay off RM4.5 million in debt, aggravated by the weakening ringgit.

He said this was a relatively small amount compared to the cost required for the major renovation to PWTC.

"Is education not more important? They face expulsion if they cannot settle their (education) debt," he said, noting that many were would-be doctors, dentists and pharmacists.

Shahiran Safwan urged the government to get its priorities right, particularly when it came to bumiputera education.

On Tuesday, Najib unveiled the planned redevelopment of PWTC.

When completed in four years, it would have a 70-storey office and hotel tower, a 5,000-capacity mosque and a retail podium.

The project would be undertaken by Malaysian Resources Corporation Bhd, a public-listed company which is about 40 percent owned by the Employees Provident Fund.

The price tag of the project has not been revealed.