KUALA LUMPUR: Recurring complaints from top students being denied places in public universities highlight glaring discrepancies in the enrolment system that must be urgently addressed, says MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong.
“Have our public universities reached a stage where money takes precedence? How can a student be offered a place if he pays RM83,800, but then be rejected under the UPUonline system?” he asked at a press conference yesterday.
Citing the case of an excellent student, Edward Wong Yi Xian, Dr Wee said Wong had achieved a perfect CGPA of 4.0 and a near-perfect 99.9% merit score, yet was rejected by Universiti Malaya (UM) for its accounting course through the UPUonline system.
What raised eyebrows, he added, was that UM had earlier offered Wong a place under its open channel system, which comes with a hefty tuition fee, only for him to later be rejected under the merit-based UPUonline route.
“This raises a big question. Who determines the number of students eligible under the open channel? Why is Edward Wong eligible to enrol if he is able to pay the higher fees?”
Under the open channel system, tuition fees are 10 times higher than through UPUonline for the accounting programme.
Dr Wee also took issue with UM vice-chancellor Prof Datuk Seri Dr Noor Azuan Abu Osman, who denied Wong’s claim of being offered a place under the open channel system, saying it required a formal application.
Noor Azuan reportedly said the student applied in July and fulfilled all the criteria, thus a pre-offer letter was issued.
“If the student was eligible under the open channel, why was he not eligible under UPUonline?” Dr Wee pressed.
The Higher Education Ministry, in a response on Tuesday, maintained that admission to public universities was merit-based.
It added that Wong had ranked 1,129 out of 1,127 eligible applicants for UM’s accounting programme, which offered just 85 places.
Dr Wee, however, disputed this figure, pointing to UM Faculty of Business and Economics data showing between 106 and 195 accounting graduates annually from 2011 to 2024.
“Clearly more than 85 students graduate each year. So where did the extra numbers come from? Are there other entry channels that explain this? Who is being dishonest here?” he asked.
He also questioned why only 85 places were offered out of the more than 40,000 students enrolling, when the nation has an urgent need for accountants.
“Malaysia needs about 60,000 accountants but currently has only 30,000. We are far from reaching the goal,” he said.
Dr Wee also rebuffed Umno Youth chief Datuk Dr Muhamad Akmal Saleh’s call for him to apologise to the ministry.
“They say it’s only 85 places, but I can show the real figure is in three digits.
“How is it logical when the number of graduates outnumber the intake? You want me to apologise? That’s not going to happen,” he said.
He stressed that access to affordable higher education was about social mobility, enabling children from lower-income families to pursue professional careers at subsidised fees.
“This issue cuts across race and politics. I am defending Malaysians, regardless if they are Malay, Chinese, Indian or those from Sabah and Sarawak,” he said, urging the government to review the open channel system, which he warned risks depriving students of fair opportunities to enter public universities.
