PKR today asked if the decrease in student intake at public universities is a new ploy by the federal government to privatise higher education further.

Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin said the decrease of student intake will only benefit private higher learning institutions.

“We believe that this is a new way of privatisation of higher learning by the federal government.

"It shifts the burden of caring for the public away from the government, and profits the private colleges and universities,” he said.

Speaking at a press conference at the party’s 10th National Congress today, Sim (right) had earlier urged the government to review the marked decrease in student intake this year.

He claimed that only 37,467 students were offered places in public higher learning institutions as opposed to the 41,537 last year.

Sim also urged the government to increase the intake of medical students to 900 as per previous years’ intake. Only 418 students were accepted for medical programmes this year.

“The drastic decrease in student intake will only transfer the financial burden to parents and students, which, in turn, will lessen the government’s financial burden,” he said.

Sim, together with four other PKR MPs have set up a Higher Education Appeal Panel (Heap) to deal with problems of outstanding students failing to enter public higher learning institutions.

The panel has thus far received 191 complaints and 54 cases were of high-scoring students being offered unusual choices and not the ones of their choice.

A further 52 cases involved outstanding students who have failed to obtain any offers.