Syed Saddiq files motion for Dewan Rakyat to debate bullying at UPNM

Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman today filed a motion to Dewan Rakyat speaker Johari Abdul for the house to debate alleged bullying cases at Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia (UPNM).

In a post on X, where he shared an image of his request to Johari, he said that bullying has become systemic and normalised at UPNM.

“This is ridiculous. I have sent an urgent motion to Parliament to find a comprehensive solution so that the culture of bullying can be stopped.

“Enough is enough. Do you want to wait for another death before acting?” he said in his post.

Earlier today, Kuala Lumpur police chief Rusdi Mohd Isa told Malaysiakini that the police have recorded statements from nine individuals involved in the latest alleged bullying case at the university.

On Oct 21, another bullying case allegedly occurred there, when a 19-year-old military cadet suffered fractures to his spine and ribs after being assaulted by another cadet.

The attack occurred just over a week before another cadet was abused with a hot iron at the same university.

Lives, safety at stake

In Syed Saddiq’s letter to Johari, he said the motion must be expedited as the issue involves the lives and safety of those at UPNM.

“Based on reports of the case, until today there are still cases of bullying that occurred even though the shocking event that claimed a life happened in the same place.

“Even there, there is a possibility that there are cases that have not been reported to the management,” he said.

The motion also says it is a matter of public interest as bullying must be stopped in all higher education institutions in Malaysia, he added.

In 2017, UPNM’s navy cadet Zulfarhan Osman Zulkarnain died after suffering burns on 80 percent of his body when he was tortured with a steam iron.

On July 23, six were sentenced to death for Zulfarhan’s killing after the Court of Appeal set aside their initial conviction for the offence of causing death with no intent to kill.

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