A degree may not define a man but lying about it does

Julia Yeow Julia Yeow Updated 5 years ago · Published on 8 Feb 2019 7:00AM · 6 Comments

Marzuki Yahya taking the oath of office as a senator in the Dewan Negara last July. The deputy foreign affairs minister is accused of faking a degree from the prestigious Cambridge University. – The Malaysian Insight pic by Seth Akmal, February 8, 2019.

WHEN reports first surfaced about Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Marzuki Yahya’s dubious Cambridge University credentials, not many Malaysians actually batted an eyelid.

In fact, if Marzuki apologised and made up some flimsy excuse about how he has not had time to vet through his Wikipedia page, where the qualifications were first spotted, Malaysians would have likely dismissed the incident as a harmless case of overcreative resume embellishment.

But instead, his first response was to play victim and claim he was ready to “prove” that he indeed had obtained a degree from UK’s Cambridge University via a long-distance programme.

The problem was that Marzuki didn’t count on the fact that Cambridge confirmed it does not offer any long-distance degree.

Which was when things started to really go downhill for him.

A day later, the deputy minister admitted that his degree in business administration was actually from the United States-based Cambridge International University, implying that somewhere along the earlier reporting lines, somebody got confused between the US and the UK.

Aspersions have since been cast on the legitimacy of said American university, which appears to share nothing but the name of the prestigious alma mater of Singapore’s founding father Lee Kuan Yew and Malaysia’s first prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman.

But above the ludicrousness of the entire situation, the following remarks by Marzuki’s colleagues from Bersatu in his defence have really drawn home how Malaysia and her leaders have become too dangerously accustomed to idiocy and dishonesty.

Bersatu supreme council member Tariq Ismail was reported as saying that people should not judge Marzuki on his degree, or lack of it.

“Having a dubious degree or not having graduated can be a stigma, but as long as people don’t rape or steal, it is fine,” said Tariq.

While it is true that the value of a public servant’s worth cannot be based on a degree, the judge of a person’s character must and should definitely be based on whether or not he or she lies about it.

Whether or not Marzuki graduated from Cambridge is irrelevant but the fact that he allegedly attempted to lie about it, is a damning revelation of his character and casts doubts on his suitability to hold public office.

The nonchalance surrounding what would have otherwise been a major scandal in any other developed, healthy democracy is a sad reality of how low our expectations have dropped to, when it comes to the integrity of our politicians.

Many supporters of Pakatan Harapan, who would have otherwise baulked in disgust had the same revelations been made of an opposition leader, have been eager to still cling on to the illusion that those whom we voted to power hold a higher moral ground than their predecessors.

There are even calls for Malaysians to “move on” from this damning revelation.

But if there is one lesson Malaysians must learn from this expose is that we have simply become too desensitised to ethical and borderline-illegal transgressions.

We have become a country that is tolerant of all the wrong things, perhaps after decades of being powerless to act against the unrestrained arrogance, irreverence and sometimes illegal acts of those in our previous government.

Our country currently does not have laws that penalise those who lie about their academic credentials, but if Marzuki has even an ounce of pride in his office, he must immediately issue an apology and offer to step down from the post.

And as much as we want to give our new leaders a chance to finally impress us, we must at all cost defend the need for our politicians to adhere to the ideals of transparency and accountability.

For if we continue to dismiss and forgive outright lies by those entrusted to vote on laws which directly affect the quality of our lives, then maybe we do deserve to be stuck with politicians who are merely non-rapists and non-thieves. – February 8, 2019.

* Julia Yeow has been in journalism for two decades and counts it as her first love, despite enjoying brief stints as a lecturer, clown and salad maker. She is a strong believer in social justice, and holds that there is sometimes more truth in the greys, than the blacks and whites.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.

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Comments

  • Well said JW. Marzuki should realise that getting an external degree is not an easy matter. I got my external degree in geography from U of London. It was a four year struggle Three years for Geography and one year for a compulsory subsidiary subject, in my case I did anthropology. During that period, one year. there was a British Airline pilot strike during the examination. I had to be on standby waiting for call from Malaysian Examination Syndicate to rush there when the Q papers arrived to sit for the examination. London U offered external degrees as a means to help the British officers serving overseas during colonial days. My only advise to Marzuki is don't treat good Education like a joking matter that money can buy.

    Posted 5 years ago by Citizen Pencen · Reply

  • Yes, those whom we voted to be in the govt must possess the utmost integrity and honesty. If you do not have such characters (I doubt how many have such), then they must at least, own up and not try to further deceive. Trying to impress by a piece of a useless certificate is more or less like having useless titles. All to impress bur

    Posted 5 years ago by Amigo sabah · Reply

  • Pls check the current Perak MB. I think he too graduated from the university of Bersatu !

    Posted 5 years ago by Nor Zachy Fernandez · Reply

  • Pls check the current Perak MB. I think he too graduated from the university of Bersatu !

    Posted 5 years ago by Nor Zachy Fernandez · Reply

  • Marzuki must resign. Period

    Posted 5 years ago by Ariffin Hasjim · Reply

  • "Whether or not Marzuki graduated from Cambridge is irrelevant but the fact that he allegedly attempted to lie about it, is a damning revelation of his character and casts doubts on his suitability to hold public office". This hits the nail on the head. The issue is about INTEGRITY and not about his academic qualifications. If he can lie once, he can lie again. No one knows how many times he has lied before. His word is not a "word of honour", and such a person is unfit too hold any public office, let alone a minister-ship. Well, it now reflects on the government that thinks it is OK to have ministers without integrity. If not, then sack him as he has no shame that will make him resign on his own.

    Posted 5 years ago by Ravinder Singh · Reply