What was Gerakan president Dr Lim Keng Yaik trying to say when he proclaimed that the party's soon-to-be-operational university would overtake the nation's premier university, Universiti Malaya (UM), in five years?

Opposition Leader Lim Kit Siang chooses to view it as 'contempt' for the nation's oldest and most prestigious university.

Yesterday, it was reported that Keng Yaik sounded the battle cry against the century-old UM during the ground breaking ceremony of Gerakan's new varsity, Wawasan Open University College (Wawasan).

"Give us five years to put Wawasan in front of UM which presumably is the country's best university. That will be our benchmark," the Star quoted the minister as saying in a report.

"If the best of the 17 public universities is held in such low esteem by the Barisan Nasional top movers and shakers, what does it say about the quality and standards of the other 16 public universities and the tertiary education system in the country?" asked Kit Siang in a statement today.

MIC/Mara university

But the veteran oppositionist was not surprised with the veteran cabinet member's aspirations.

"Keng Yaik cannot be faulted [...] and berated for unwarranted [...] and baseless contempt for the nation's premier public university as his feelings represents the mainstream view of thinking Malaysians," Kit Siang claimed.

In another development, MIC is contemplating setting up an university in India soon, in collaboration with Mara.

Proposals for the university will soon be submitted to Mara, Bernama reported.