Creme de la creme

Pat! Pat! Pat on the shoulder for announcing that all SPM top scorers will get scholarships to study in local and overseas universities. But knowing Najib’s previous promises if he loses more states to the opposition in the coming election, SPM top scorers especially the non-Malays can kiss good-bye.

Today I am happy for the SPM students but angry that our Government for the past twenty years have continue to discourage students from studying till STPM. During my time STPM is a required qualification to enter University. You need to be prepare as University is a different ball game unlike Secondary schools. Why is our leaders in a hurry to jump start everything that rings in musical ringgit? For a mere population of 27 million, we have the most number of Universities in the world. Not one is at par with Middlesex, Gifu, Makpo, SIM University.......etc...........That right, these are three stars University.

University of Malaya was THE UNIVERSITY to be proud of then. The lecturers were the best, the students were the best but now a Robotic Manufacturing Warehouse.

Nowadays students are all encourage to finish SPM and enter this and that Universities, even a dog house can be classified a University if you have the dough and strong cables. Students who continues to study STPM are considered waste of time, failure or stupid by the teachers themselves. To make matter worse, the Form Six teachers especially from the Lower Six are never around. They are forever in meetings, seminars or attending courses – like seven course Chinese Dinner. No matter how much we complain, no-one listens.

These culture of jumping/jump start also create problems of different nature. The students find themselves not able to accept and understand different level of teaching and studying. Like the saying "New Broom Sweeps Well", the decline and interest in study begins to drift after the first semester. After that the University has to lower their gradings to cater for the failures and some resourceful parents even hire outsiders to sit for their children’s exams or bribe the lecturers for the question before hand. I used to know of three lecturers who have cash RM300,000 at any given days in their bedrooms and have accounts in Singapore, Thailand and Australia. Lecturers are not top level earners, unless you are Rafidah Aziz the billionaire, then it another cake.

Now my other frustration is that students enter University more for sex and finding husbands than studying. This is so very true. I can accept that with new found freedom and at that age, 85% students will want to have sex. But why not enjoy and at the same time take proper precaution from unwanted pregnancy. Many students are making doctors rich by going for abortion like big sales shopping.

Students especially the ones on scholarship or loans should focus on getting their degree first, before embarking on a different route. 85% Malay students who are on scholarship or loans get marry and have a kid before they could finish their degree.

Today’s world a degree is not worth a salt. Many big companies are hiring Master Holders and above. So with family commitments many are unable to pay back the loan, whereby creating a cycle of no return. My sister-in-law is still paying monthly for the study loan she took 22 years ago and will continue to do so for the next 50 years if she is still alive. So if everyone is like her, we should start planting money tree in our garden for the government.

So creme de la creme be on the lookout because such an announcement comes the breaking news of election. But Najib always forget the morceau de sucre our biggest unhappiness.