9 Malaysia haunted by 'fake degrees The recent spate of revelations of senior government politicians falsifying and embellishing their education qualifications is pressuring the Prime Minister to take action. By HO WAH FOON he was a Cambridge University [email protected] graduate? This PPBM leader only clarified that he graduated from WHEN the scandal linked to the Cambridge International use of bogus and unaccredited University after being pressed degrees by politicians in the ruling from all sides," said the academic Pakatan Harapan coalition was group in a statement last brewing, the image of my one-time Wednesday. boss - a tycoon in Hong Kong - Umno Youth has urged Dr immediately flashed through my Mahathir to revamp his Cabinet mind. soon to "restore Malaysia's interna- I became his staff after his cor- tional image" as the credibility of poration took over a company I the country has been eroded by the was working at. The excitement of "fake degree" scandal. working for the prominent billion- But Guan Eng's father Lim Kit aire turned into disappointment Siang, the DAP adviser and sea- when an international newspaper soned politician, has chosen to look exposed that he did not hold a at the current spate of revelations degree from a prestigious universi- from the political angle. ty in the United States as claimed. In a statement, he said the His group had for years issued attacks on politicians' academic publicity material describing him credentials have ITOW turned into as having graduated from said US a "witch hunt" by the Barisan university. Nasional opposition. Lim said this And although the smart busi- witch-hunt is to ensure their sur- nessman reacted promptly by vival after their devastating loss in admitting he did not graduate from the last election. the prestigious institution, he could It is commendable that govern- not stop the selldown in his shares. ment politicians such as Youth and This embarassing episode hap- Sports Minister Syed Saddiq Syed pened 18 years ago, but it has not Abdul Rahman have condemned been erased from my memory. It acts to falsify academic qualifica- goes to show the extent of collater- tions. al damage his ommission - know- This is in time with public opin- ingly or unknowingly - has done to ion, which is definitely against any him and his public-listed company. act of dishonesty. His failure to amend his creden- People do not mind their leaders tials before all hell broke loose still A looming issue: The expose on Marzuki (left) has led to netizens embarking on a series of checks on the not holding any degrees but they begs an answer. academic credentials of other senior politicians in the ruling Pakatan coalition like Osman and Yong. cannot accept dishonest leaders, Back home, two senior Cabinet say analysts. ministers in the current "scroll As Penang Institute political sci- scandal" appear to share a similar entist Dr Wong Chin Huat puts it: situation. "It's okay to not have a degree. We Housing and Local Government don't need every politician to be Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin technocratically competent. But it found herself in an embarrassing is not okay to have fake degrees." situation on Feb 9 after a Twitter When Pakatan was in the oppo- user highlighted that her name sition, it had hit out at several was not in the degree verification Barisan leaders for holding fake or portal of the National University of dubious university qualifications. Singapore (NUS), one of the leading But no action was taken against universities in the world. them by the Prime Minister then. The Minister subsequently clari- Dr Mohd Tajuddin Mohd Rasdi, fied that she had "never claimed to professor at UCSI University, tells be a graduate of NUS" and blamed Sunday Star that this scandal the media for not verifying it with should not be brushed aside. her before publication. "If the allegations of fake degrees Defence Minister Mohamad Prof Dr Mohd Tajuddin: If the Lim: The attacks on politicians' Dr Wong: 'It's okay to not have a are true and clearly verified, I Sabu denied that he had faked allegations are true, these MPs academic credentials have now degree ... but it is not okay to have think these MPs should apologise a degree in culinary arts from should apologise and be removed.' turned into a 'witch hunt'. fake degrees.' and be removed," he says. Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM), If over-stating one's academic although he quipped that he could of checks on other senior politi- Eng was really "an accountant", adminstration of Datuk Seri Najib qualification to gain promotion or cook well. cians in the ruling Pakatan coali- based on the documents shown by Razak in the 14th General Election higher position happens in the But he won sympathy after he tion led by Dr Mahathir. Guan Eng's political secretary Tony last May due to their outrage workplace, employers are entitled disclosed that he had actually been Apart from Marzuki, the other Pua and written replies from pro- over rampant corruption, lack of to sack the employees, according expelled by UiTM because of his two serious cases of misleading fessional bodies in Australia. accountability and transparency, to the Malaysian Employers involvement in a student move- education credentials are those Although the DAP's secretary- as well as mismanagement. Federation and legal precedents. ment. linked to Johor Mentri Besar Datuk general had threatened legal suits Voters wanted politicians of Although falsifying educational In these two cases, the media has Osman Sapian and Perak executive on those questioning his education integrity, capability and credibility qualification had happened in the been faulted for not seeking verifi- councillor Paul Yong Choo Kiong. credentials, media outlets have to lead the country to create a past and is happening everywhere, cations before going to the press. Osman, who had initially refused ignored his warning. new Malaysia. And the Pakatan this issue has to be dealt with now But for Deputy Foreign Minister to reply to media questions on Journalists are duty-bound to Harapan coalition gave their without hesitation. Datuk Marzuki Yahya, it is a clear- his degree from Universiti Putra report the truth, particularly on pledge for this before May 9 polls The current government cannot cut case of misconduct that war- Malaysia, finally admitted on issues linked to public figures and and after they won the election. emulate the previous regime in rants attention. Thursday that he did not complete public interest. However, recent incidents - sweeping this long-standing issue Marzuki, also the secretary- his tertiary studies. But to be fair, no one has doubt- including the acceptance of defect- under the carpet. general of Parti Pribumi Bersatu For Yong, media reports suggest- ed that Guan Eng holds a degree ing Umno MPs into PPBM last week The feeling of the public can be Malaysia (PPBM) founded by ed that Akamai University, from from Monash University in - are eroding people's confidence summarised by an editorial in Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir which he earned his masters Australia. in Dr Mahathir and the Pakatan Nanyang Siang Pau. Mohamad and other former Umno degree in business administration, For Cabinet members and depu- government. On Feb 11, the Chinese paper leaders, had claimed to hold a was a "degree mill" in Hawaii. ty ministers who are in awkward The Malaysian Academic said: "There is nothing shameful bachelor's degree from UK-based Yong has turned the tables on the situations now, their fate will Movement is one of the groups about not having a degree, but University of Cambridge. But after opposition instead, accusing them depend on the prerogative of the who are openly urging the Prime using fake degrees to cheat people an activist lodged a police report, of trying to score political mileage Prime Minister and the moral Minister to remove Marzuki as the or voters is unacceptable. he admitted that his degree was in this scandal. standard he sets for his team of deputy foreign minister over his "When a person can cheat others not from the world's top-ranking The "fake degree epidemic" leaders. "dubious" degree. on his education credentials, he university, but rather from turned thrilling early last week But non-government organisa- The NGO has demanded the can also cheat on other things. This Cambridge International when the powerful and combative tions (NGOs), the opposition and same for other Pakatan officials kind of people - whether from the University, an alleged degree mill Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng media are not leaving the sole who have misrepresented their ruling or opposition parties - in the United States. became the latest subject of scruti- judgement to Dr Mahathir. The academic qualifications. should not be accommodated." Despite this, PPBM said no action ny. issue of integrity and credibility is "The Pakatan coalition must Integrity and the truth matters, if would be taken against Marzuki. MCA president and opposition at stake. prove its commitment to integrity the government wants to win and The expose on Marzuki has led MP Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong Lest politicians forget this: and good governance. Why did retain the confidence of the people to netizens embarking on a series raised doubts on whether Guan Malaysians voted out the former Marzuki create assumptions that and investors. .