Deputy House Speaker Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar has denied a 'poison-pen' email allegation that he had obtained a ‘fake' doctoral degree.

The accusation was circulated in an email message last week by an individual who claimed to be a Kuching citizen.

parliament opposition mps dispute najib budget 051108 wan junaidi In the email, the citizen claimed that the Doctorate of Business Administration that the Parliament's deputy speaker received was from an ‘unrecognised' university in the United States.

Met in Parliament, Wan Junaidi pointed out that he was a recipient of the doctorate degree from the Southern California University for Professional Studies in 2005 and not from American Northeastate University ( sic ) as alleged in the email.

"You can come to my office and I can show you my paperwork (from the university)," he asserted.

'Not a recognised university'

The email, which was circulated widely among journalists a few days ago, also alleged that the American Northeastate University was not recognised by the US Education Department.

american northeastate university alumni website 171108 The anonymous writer described the university as a "degree mill".

"I think if we have this sort of leaders, Malaysia will really be the laughing stock," said the writer.

The writer accused Wan Junaidi of "buying a fake doctorate".

"If you already have a Datuk, why do you have to buy a fake doctorate?" said the email sender, who requested anonymity.

The email also provide a link to a blog purportedly showing the list of the university's graduates for 2006.