I cannot but be bewildered by the latest incident that has brought two political parties in Malaysia at loggerheads. Considering the latest announcements by MCA president Dr Ling Liong Sik and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi that there would be no imposition of a 10 percent bumiputra quota on TAR College and other private colleges, I as a non-bumiputra am very much on their side.

However, the remarks by Umno Youth leader Hishammuddin Hussein is very much off the 'Malaysian spirit'. By questioning Ling's remark, he is showing no real qualities one would expect from a potential candidate for premiership. Lest we forget, the demand for entry to private colleges should be based upon academic qualifications.

By imposing a quota, and in the event there aren't enough bumiputra candidates, there would be wastage of resources with spaces left that can't be filled by other applicants. There should be no quota as anybody with good enough qualifications would be able to walk into these colleges and get a place. Without a '10 percent' quota, if bumiputra students produce good academic results, they would even get more than 10 percent places.

Ling has reassured the people that both Utar (Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman) and TARC (Tunku Abdul Rahman College) which MCA runs are open to all. According to The Star (June 10, 2002), he stated that most bumiputra students have ample options given by the government to study abroad or at the many public universities and colleges.

There are or were quotas that prevented so many better qualified non-bumiputra students from continuing their studies locally, and for those who can hardly afford to do it in private ones and abroad they had to sacrifice their higher education ambitions. This is or was because of the quota system that has been seen by many as a form of 'discrimination' by the authorities.

While not wishing to comment or remark directly on the taboo racial issue, it is impossible to address this remark without involving it at all. We in Malaysia have learnt to accept the fact that many bumiputra students are under-privileged and thus need help from the government through the many agencies set up, Mara (Majlis Amanah Rakyat) being one.

Billions of ringgit have gone out to pay for the tuition fees of many bumiputra students, and while not discrediting the achievements, we must not forget the needs of many poor non-bumiputra who have no such access to such funds.

There can only be kudos to the government when it decides to impose a 10 percent quota for non-bumiputra students to enrol in Mara Junior Science colleges and matriculation programmes previously limited to bumiputra. Even so, this deal has been opposed by some groups who 'fear' that such moves would crowd out bumiputra. This is not true.

We have to remember that such funds come from Malaysian taxpayers that consist of many races. If there should be chances for one particular race then there should be chances for all.

While education is an important key to improve the living standards of bumiputra, there should not be excessive demands or controls placed upon this key industry. Malaysia needs all the graduates it can get — be they trained locally or abroad — to achieve its desired goal of being a developed nation status.

As such, there should be open chances for all students of all races to be able to further their studies. No one should be shunned of any opportunities. Malaysia should know better — bright students given scholarship offers by foreign countries are often our loss if they do not return. Malaysia should also realise that its most important asset is not its minerals but its human resources.

As a Malaysian, I strongly object to such remarks by Umno Youth and while congratulating the government on its latest initiatives in the education industry, I think it should not stop now but continue to work on it. We need an education blueprint which should be made public to be debated by all Malaysians.

The government should not forget that in the last election it is the non-bumiputra voters who voted for Barisan Nasional while Umno lost ground in many Malay-majority constituencies. The government is encouraged to be seen as equal or near that while the image of being too one-sided would be used by the opposition to attack the government despite the recent improvements in the approval ratings.

The government has invested a lot of resources and capital in developing its human resources since independence and a lot have changed since then. So much has been achieved and we should not stop right now.

One suggestion to the government: Establish funds for Malaysians who are studying overseas to encourage them to return and contribute to Malaysia's economic growth. While there is such funds for bumiputra students, there is none for others.

Malaysia needs a strong, well-qualified and eager civil workforce, and loans could be tied to working in the civil service for a few years. This would benefit both the government and the graduate: Graduates would possess the necessary working experience while the government would be able to have the cream of the crop and encourage them to stay on in the service with excellent incentives.