PETALING JAYA: The Prime Minister’s announcement to abolish the Universities and University Colleges Act (Auku) 1971 is a significant step towards education reform, says Adam Adli Abdul Halim.
The Deputy Higher Education Minister said the announcement was a gift to students.
"At this point, I don’t think about who won or who gets the credit.
"I’m simply reminded of the faces of those who stood together before, those who were afraid but still showed up, and those who were punished but continued to speak out.
"Thank you, Prime Minister," he said in a statement on Saturday (Aug 15)
Earlier, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that Auku will be abolished.
The Prime Minister, who is also PKR president, announced this during his policy speech at the 2026 PKR National Congress on Saturday.
The abolition of the Act is part of PKR’s longstanding reform commitments.
Earlier this year, a group of student protesters called for Auku to be abolished by walking to the Parliament building to hand over a memorandum outlining their demands.
The Higher Education Ministry said it was prepared to listen to all grievances raised by student protesters.
Its minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir said his ministry is open to reviewing Auku, an Act he referred to as dynamic.
