Free Malaysia Today-Nov 23
PKR president Anwar Ibrahim today reprimanded university students for not voicing concern over the 1MDB scandal, saying they appeared more interested in championing race and religion.
Speaking at his alma mater, Universiti Malaya, Anwar said the country was far from producing graduates who had ideals and morals. “The 1MDB scandal is considered the worst scandal involving any government,” the Port Dickson MP said.
“I was in Singapore last week… and I said, the laundering of such a scale is not because of politicians, but because of students.”
He added that fancy libraries and buildings and first-rate professors were all pointless if they were incapable of producing critical-minded individuals with morals. He criticized academics who, despite having “long beards and shining degrees”, were “deaf” and had no conscience as they were only interested in fighting for race or religion.
He also hit out at those who were willing to die for the sake of such causes but would “let billions be robbed right in front of their eyes”.
On the proposed ratification of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), Anwar reiterated his stand that discussions should be held with all stakeholders before a decision is made.
He added that even Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad had now expressed concerns about ratifying the treaty. “I myself am not sure,” he said regarding concerns that the ICERD would contravene the Federal Constitution. “Legal interpretations in Malaysia may not necessarily be the same as those overseas. “Therefore our suggestion is to postpone it for now.”
“I want all Malaysians – Malays, Chinese, Indians, Sabahans and Sarawakians – to feel like they have equal rights to uplift the country together, but I must also stress that Islam as the religion of the federation must be respected.”
The last time Anwar spoke at UM was in 2014. The university had then banned the talk and advised staff members to leave early. The main gates of the varsity were also locked, forcing Anwar to speak from the back of a pickup truck that night.
Anwar referred to this during his talk, quipping, “It’s much more peaceful now than before.”
