[Kerajaan telah memutuskan tidak akan memberi bantuan kewangan untuk penubuhan UTAR. Ini bermakna MCA perlu bergantung kepada derma untuk mengongkosnya. Bukan wang sahaja, malah kepakaran dan sokongan oleh golongan pendidik Cina. Tetapi siapakah yang sudi membantunya lagi kerana dia telah banyak melanyak mereka dalam isu-isu pendidikkan kaum Cina selama ini.

Menguruskan satu universiti memerlukan rekod yang baik. Tetapi Ling mempunyai rekod yang amat tempang seperti skandal Tabung JE dan mempersiakan Tabung Chang Min Thien. Pemimpin MCA bukan sahaja gagal membela masyarakat Cina malah mereka kerap menyeleweng sehingga wang Koperasi pun turut dikerjakan sama. Sekarang minda rakyat pula menjadi sasaran kerana kaum Cina yang cerdik akan menyusahkan mereka. Itu sebiji tektik ala Mahathir juga....
- Editor]

[BUNGARAYA]

"Not even ONE Ringgit for the proposed UTAR"

Media statement by Ronnie Liu, DAP national publicity secretary on Thursday, 12 July 2001 in Petaling Jaya

I would not pay even ONE Ringgit to MCA for the proposed UTAR!

Now that Ling Liong Sik has indicated that the government will not fund the proposed UTAR, and MCA has to depend on public fund to build the proposed party-owned university, there is no reason for Liong Sik to blow his own trumpet about the project.

As a partner in the ruling BN government, what Ling Liong Sik should really do is to persuade the government to build more universities to cater for the needs of our students, rather than shifting the responsibility of the government to the Chinese community.

He should also persuade the government to upgrade the present TAR College to the status of "university", just like what UMNO did for the Mara Institute of Technology (now known as UiTM). He should also use his influence to persuade the government to upgrade the New Era College and the Kolej Selatan set up by the Chinese community to the varsity status, instead of competing with these colleges for the limited resources found in the community.

The community is also expecting Liong Sik to persuade the BN government to review (if not, abolish) the ethnic quota system, so that our children with several As (SPM or STPM) can secure a place in the local universities.

Thousands of Non-Malay students were deprived of places in our local universities each year. The country is losing billions of Ringgit in foreign reserve to support our students overseas.

Ling Liong Sik, in fact, has a chance to upgrade the TAR College to varsity status two years ago but he failed to do so simply because he dare not risk offending Najib and other senior UMNO leaders. He was under tremendous pressure from the TAR College graduates and his grassroots members at that time. He has no business now to compete with other colleges and educational institutions supported solely by the Chinese community.

Liong Sik and the MCA should know pretty well that the entire community is already burdened with three colleges and 60 independent high schools, not to mention the 1,200 plus Chinese primary schools. If we allow MCA to "squeeze" the limited resources of the Chinese community further, I'm afraid the development of these colleges, high schools and the primary schools supported by the community all these years will suffer tremendously.

MCA should persuade the government to pay for the university. Otherwise, they should find the money on it's own to build and maintain the proposed UTAR. The Chinese community has no obligation to pay a single cent to help serve Liong Sik's personal political agenda. I personally would not pay even one Ringgit to MCA for the proposed university.

I also wish to remind the Malaysian public not to forget the manner MCA manages public fund. MCA has messed up the RM10 millions donated by the late Chang Min Thien 20 years ago, depriving hundreds of needy students the chance of receiving higher education. MCA also fared badly in handling the JE Fund for the victims and their families.

How can anyone trust the party with such a bad record to build and maintain a university?