The Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) student representative council called upon students to wear black clothing to campus on Thursday (May 16) to protest a proposal that would allow non-bumiputra students to enrol into its cardiothoracic surgery postgraduate programme, Malaysiakini reported.

The council further urged students to use the hashtag #MahasiswaUiTMBantah on their social media posts as an act of solidarity with the movement.

"The objective of UiTM's establishment is to preserve the special position of the Malays, Orang Asli, and the natives of Sabah and Sarawak with the aim of ensuring less privileged bumiputra students receive access to higher education," the council wrote in a statement published on X (formerly Twitter).

“We unanimously support UiTM to stay with the original objective of its establishment, which is to protect and advance bumiputra students as a bastion of national privilege and progress."

SELASA | 14 MEI 2024

Assalamualaikum WBT,

Salam Sejahtera,

Salam UiTM di hatiku.

[KENYATAAN RASMI PENDIRIAN TEGUH MAJLIS PERWAKILAN PELAJAR (MPP) UiTM TERHADAP PERKARA 153] pic.twitter.com/yl1cejHSpz

— MPP UiTM SHAH ALAM SESI 2023/2024 (@MPPUiTM_SA) May 14, 2024

University exploring the possibility of allowing non-bumiputras to enrol

The definition of bumiputra is not set out in the federal constitution of Malaysia, but Article 160 defines the criteria for someone to be considered a Malay, which is to be a Muslim, speak the Malay language, be born to Malaysian parents and conform to Malay customs.

UiTM has the MARA designation, which stands for Majlis Amanah Rakyat or the People's Trust Council. It is a Malaysian government agency under the Ministry of Regional and Rural Development, formed to guide the development of bumiputras.

On Apr. 25, Malaysian health website CodeBlue reported that Raja Amin Raja Mokhtar, a member of the board of studies for the UiTM-IJN (National Health Institute) cardiothoracic surgery postgraduate programme, said that the university is amenable to allowing non-bumiputras to enrol via a parallel pathway for trainees and graduates.

He revealed that the decision was made after a discussion with UiTM's vice-chancellor and the chairperson of the university's board, who supposedly agreed to the idea for a limited period.

Shortage of trained surgeons

This comes after news that four graduates who obtained specialist qualifications from a parallel pathway programme in the Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh (RCSEd) were told they could not register as specialists and practice the specialism in Malaysia, as the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) does not recognise the qualification.

All four graduates, who have since sued the MMC, passed a mandatory RCSEd Joint Speciality Fellowship Examination in cardiothoracic surgery used in both Hong Kong and Singapore.

UiTM is the only university that provides a parallel pathway programme in collaboration with the national health institute in the cardiothoracic field, which consists of surgery and care for heart and lung diseases.

On May 9, the Malaysian Medical Association said that UiTM should allow non-bumiputra Malaysians looking into specialised training in the cardiothoracic field, since international students are allowed to enrol in the varsity.

According to association president Azizan Abdul Aziz:

"Cardiothoracic surgeons are one of the specialisations most in demand.

UiTM should consider the suggestion to temporarily open up its cardiothoracic surgery postgraduate programme to non-bumiputra."

Govt denied there was any discussion of allowing non-bumiputra enrolment

However, after word emerged of the planned student protest, Higher Education Minister Zambry Abd Kadir on May 15 denied there was any discussion on opening the UiTM postgraduate programme to non-bumiputra students, Malay Mail reported.

He added that several issues would need to be looked over before such an idea could be contemplated.

UiTM vice-chancellor Shahrin Sahib said that the university is committed to upholding the UiTM Act 1976 (Act 173) and Article 153 of the Federal Constitution, which allows only the enrolment of bumiputra students.

Politicians get involved

Bersatu Youth stands in solidarity with student protest

Meanwhile, Bersatu Youth said they stand in solidarity with UiTM students protesting against the proposal to allow non-bumiputras to enrol in the university cardiothoracic surgery postgraduate programme, Malaysiakini reported.

In a statement, Bersatu Youth Assistant Secretary Muhammad Faiz Rahmad said that the proposal goes against the Federal Constitution and existing laws.

Country's pressing need for medical care more urgent: DAP Youth

On the other hand, Democratic Action Party (DAP) Youth chief Kelvin Yii argued that the country's pressing need for medical care is more urgent, Malaysiakini reported.

He highlighted that the shortage of cardiothoracic surgeons has severely impacted healthcare services, even causing some patients who were waiting for months to pass away before they could even receive treatment.

Yii said that conversations on the matter should focus on solutions and maximising the abilities of all local institutions to produce specialists instead.

He added that Malaysia would have less than 15 per cent of the minimum number of cardiothoracic surgeons required to serve the population by 2030, citing statistics from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DoSM).

Yii encouraged Malaysians to unite against the matter rather than letting it divide them.

UiTM students deny being racist

UiTM students told Malay Mail that their protest was not racial in nature.

“We may be seen as racist, but it has nothing to do with that," first-year degree student Natasha told Malay Mail.

She argued that UiTM was first established for lower-income Malays, and that there are still many bumiputra and Malay families in the financial category today.

“This university was made to help these people, if it changes its policy to enrol non-Bumiputra students, there will be competition.

And why make the already struggling lower-income families face more difficulties in finding a spot in local institutions like UiTM?”

Top image via Universiti Teknologi MARA - Media Rasmi/Facebook.