PM has good news for Tamil schools
Malaysiakini.com
Jul 12, 2008

Abdullah Ahmad Badawi today announced immediate steps to enhance education among Indian students, either at school or university level, for the long-term benefit of the country's third largest community.
MCPX

He said among others, the government had agreed to turn more partly-aided Tamil schools, many of which are in the rural areas, into fully-aided schools.

"The government will also speed up the process of merging and consolidating the Tamil schools that have less than 50 students," he said in his speech when opening the 62nd MIC general assembly in Kuala Lumpur today.

According to Bernama, the prime minister said the government also agreed that students from the MIC-run Asian Institute of Medicine, Science and Technology (AIMST) University in Kedah would be allowed to apply for scholarships from the Public Services Department.

Fifth private U to enjoy facility

The move will make AIMST University the fifth private university to enjoy such a facility after institutions like the Monash University, Swinburne University and the University of Nottingham, among others.

mic 62 agm 120708 abdullah smileThe BN chief said the government would also assist the AIMST University to increase its student population in critical fields such as engineering and medical - a move which Abdullah said would help push the university's standard to a higher level.

He said such a recognition would indirectly result in more Indian students taking courses at the university, of which main campus was under construction on a 156-hectare site in Semeling, Kedah.

The AIMST University now operates at its temporary campus in Bandar Aman Jaya, Sungai Petani.

Abdullah said the government was giving emphasis to education in the efforts to help the community because the success of future generation would depend on human capital development through skills enhancement training and education.

Earlier, the prime minister asked all quarters to really understand why the Barisan Nasional government had to implement measures regarded as unpopular, such as restructuring the fuel price subsidy which resulted in higher prices for petrol and diesel.

Responsibility, not popularity

He said the measures, some of which had made the people angry with the government, had to be implemented to ensure that the people were not burdened for the long term.

"Every decision may have not been popular but we had to resort to implementing them all the same because the government has to assume the responsibility in the interests of the people and country," he said.

mic 62 agm 120708 delegatesAbdullah pointed out that the BN government was not prepared to neglect the responsibility it had been entrusted with by being popular through the introduction of measures that did not bring any benefit to the people.

"It is stupid for the government to seek to be unpopular. Why should we do something to be unpopular? Why must we do something for the people to get angry and condemn us? Why?

"We feel we don't want all that but what we want to do is something that we must do. We took those measures not to become popular.

"We cannot be popular but we must be responsible to the people and the nation," he said.

Abdullah added that the BN government was striving hard to overcome the problems of the people and announcements would be made from time to time on the measures taken in that direction.

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