Maszlee to meet student activists on Wednesday

Chan Kok Leong Chan Kok Leong Updated 7 years ago · Published on 8 Sep 2018 11:50AM · 1 Comments

Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik is adamant about staying on as president of International Islamic University Malaysia despite outcry over the appointment. – The Malaysian Insight file pic, September 8, 2018.

EDUCATION Minister Dr Maszlee Malik will meet student activists protesting against his appointment as a university president after his return from a working trip to Sarawak.

“I have asked my officers to arrange a suitable time to meet the group on Wednesday,” Maszlee said in a statement today.

“We have decided to meet them, as they insist on conveying their views on why I should resign as the International Islamic University Malaysia president.”

The under-fire minister said he had instructed his special adviser Wan Saiful Wan Jan to meet the protesters yesterday and to assure the group that they could meet the minister and convey their views.

A small group of student protesters gathered at the Education Ministry building in Putrajaya yesterday and two were arrested at 1.30am.

The students have a right to demonstrate peacefully, Maszlee said. 

The protesters left the compound and relocated to the main gate around 11pm. All but two protesters left when police broke up the gathering around 2am.

“All but two of the activists decided to end the protest and they were detained for questioning until 7am,” said Maszlee.

Asheeq Ali and Siti Nurrizah Dazali were released on police bail this morning.

A small group of student protesters gathered at the Education Ministry building in Putrajaya yesterday to protest against the minister's appointment as president of a university. – Facebook pic, September 8, 2018.

The National Human Rights Society (Hakam), meanwhile, urged Maszlee to decline the appointment or to step down as IIUM president.

Hakam said the Pakatan Harapan government has breached its promise in its election manifesto on restoring the independence of public universities.

“The appointment of the education minister as president of IIUM is a manifestation of the exact rot in academic freedom which happened in the past. 

“Having the minister as a president of one particular public university inevitably signals a perception of the government’s bias towards IIUM, which would affect higher education policy in general,” said Hakam secretary-general Lim Wei Jiet in a statement.

Hakam added that it supported Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s statement yesterday that Maszlee’s appointment was “not carved in stone” and would be reviewed. – September 8, 2018.

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Comments

  • Morally and politically it is wrong to have a minister as the president of the university..
    There is always an agenda somewhere..
    - for IIUM maybe they hoping for preferential treatment from the government. Why else offer the position to a minister. Please dont say he is the best qualified person for the job! Come on, there are hundreds of capable people around!
    - for Maszlee it maybe a personal achievement, gratification? From lecturer to Minister - wow, and now Minister cum President, IIUM. Skys the limit, man!

    Posted 7 years ago by Thiruchelvam Thirunavukarasu · Reply