Do not disguise personal interests in the name of students’ welfare
Following the Union’s meeting with the TNCA (Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Academic & International) on 18th September 2023, the Ministry of Higher Education released a media statement responding to the Union’s demand.
In the said statement, University Malaya attempted to justify their actions with the following reasons:
i) For students who are sponsored under PTPTN, JPA or any registered sponsorships listed under UM’s Treasurer, students carry the responsibilities themselves to contact the Bursary Department for matters related to sponsorship fees and registration.
ii) Based on data, less than 4% of students are affected by this policy.
iii) Student Affairs Department will be coordinating any appeals for financial aid application, subject to students’ eligibility. Thus, students listed under this category are allowed to register and must settle their fees by Week 7 of Semester 1, 2023/2024. The UM administration also guarantees that all appeals will be checked and processed as soon as possible.
iv) University Malaya had, allegedly, been experiencing an increasing trend of student debt, which was the main reasoning of this implementation of policy. In response to this, the Union would like to pose these questions to University Malaya’s Administration, and the Ministry of Higher Education.
1) What happens to self-sponsored students who do not qualify for any of the financial aid applications offered by the Student Affairs Department? Are they given the same privilege of settling their fees before Week 7?
If they are not given the same privilege, would it be fair for these students to settle their fees before activation of status, considering the UM administration's omission to inform the students, and the Union, of this change of policy? Most students are caught off guard by this sudden change of practice, regardless of whether they fit in any categories listed by UM. In addition, considering the large number of UM undergraduates, 4% is still a lot.
2) Furthermore, what is the reasoning for allowing students to settle their fees before Week 7? If the UM administration provides this as a solution, the Union suggests for the administration to, might as well reinforce the conventional way of practice — allow students to settle their fees before the semester ends.
3) Why must students suffer the consequences of Universiti Malaya’s own negligence?
The Union believes the debt suffered by UM is due to their own inaction and inefficiency, as proven by their actions throughout this fiasco. The least that the UM administration could do was to inform the students before the implementation of this policy, which they have failed to do. The Union will no
longer tolerate UM’s negligence.
The Union remains firm on our previous stance, we demand University Malaya to:
1. Abolish the “Zero-Balance Policy” and reenforce the conventional practice.
The Union believes “Zero-Balance Policy” is not the only way to settle students’ debt. Rather, students should be given the privilege of settling their fees before the release of exam results.
2. Activate all students’ status immediately.
As stated in our earlier statement, to enforce this policy is similar to hindering students from receiving the quality education that the students deserve. To bar students from activating their student status and registering their modules is completely outrageous.
3. Must include Universiti Malaya’s Student Union in all future discussions for any change of policy relating to students’ autonomy. For all future discourses relating to students’ autonomy, the UM
Administration must include the Student Union, especially before making any crucial decisions. It is highly disappointing for UM to disregard the students’ voices for the sake of leveraging their own personal interests.
Unfortunately, UMSU is also unable to concur, on any of the points brought forward by University Malaya & Ministry of Higher Education, due to the lack of proper transition of policy, no clear explanation on how this policy benefits the students, and their failure to inform the students regarding this sudden implementation of policy.
Due to these unreasonable justifications and ineffective solutions provided by University Malaya and the Ministry of Higher Education, UMSU will continue to pressure the higher administration to abolish this policy and activate all students’ status immediately. Universiti Malaya must not take our demands lightly, as the Union is committed to ensure our demands are met and the students’ voices are heard.
TO SERVE THE STUDENTS
- Universiti Malaya Students’ Union 2023/2024
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