IPOH: Calls for the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) to be recognised should not be accepted unanimously, says PKR Youth chief Muhammad Kamil Abdul Munim.
Kamil said several important considerations must be taken before a decision is made.
"For example, our priority is to uphold Bahasa Melayu as a language of knowledge, intermediary language and an important component, possibly even a requirement for any certificate to be recognised.
"This includes other subjects such as History," he told reporters after a meeting with farmers at Dewan Kampung Baru Kuala Kuang on Friday (Dec 12).
He was asked to comment regarding Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's statement at Langkawi regarding the debate over calls for the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC) to be recognised.
Kamil, who is also the Finance Minister’s political secretary added that it is important that any policy decision made does not contradict the principles and position under the Federal Constitution.
"I don’t think this issue should be manipulated by certain parties trying to make irresponsible political statements.
"Everything can be checked. All previous administrations have spoken about the UEC," he said.
“So give the government some space to review the matter.
"I believe in the coming period, there will be some announcements without compromising, sidelining or ignoring the key principles enshrined in the Constitution. Those principles must be defended," he added.
He said the UEC issue has existed through multiple administration to previous leaders such as Tun Dr Mahathir, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
"Each of them talked about championing or implementing UEC recognition, but the problem is implementation. It never materialised.
"It’s similar to the issue of targeted subsidies," he said.
"Since the time of Najib up to Ismail Sabri, every prime minister agreed on targeted subsidies, but they didn’t have the mechanism, courage, or strong political will to find a solution.
"So when we announced it, some people made noise, yes. But now that it has been implemented, Alhamdulillah, there are no issues,” he said.
“It’s the same with the UEC. It has been discussed for years, but what we lacked was a thorough discussion that looked at the matter in its entirely," he added.
On businessman Albert Tei's challenge whether Anwar would claim to be a hero to expose the Sabah mining scandal, Muhammad Kamil said that Tei needed to stop the hypocrisy and drama.
“I want to clarify that, first of all, the Prime Minister has never described himself as a hero in this matter, nor has he ever said that the recipient of a bribe is more noble than the giver.
“I believe this is the first time in our country’s history that someone has openly admitted in public that he gave payments to a closed party in exchange for project returns,” he said.
“He made this admission publicly, and when he was charged in court, he pleaded not guilty.
“Then suddenly he emerges as if he is some kind of anti-corruption fighter. Giving or receiving, both are the same; there is no difference,” he added.
He added that the government remains focused on issues of governance, legal enforcement and transparency.
“As the Prime Minister mentioned, over the past three years, RM15.5bil has been recovered as a result of anti-corruption enforcement efforts. That is what truly matters,” he said.
In the meeting with the farmers, he has suggested including a shift from their current traditional farming methods to modern approaches such as vertical farming, to address the issue of limited land in the Tambun area.
“Next week, I will try to make time to meet with the relevant stakeholders, including state government-linked companies, to present several alternative proposals,” he said.
He added that he would convey the same message to the Perak Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad, as the state authority overseeing matters related to land and related issues.
