Dr M was no fan of academic freedom, says Maszlee

[superadmin]

PETALING JAYA: In a newly published book, former education minister Maszlee Malik has described how attempts to guarantee academic freedom hit a roadblock with then-prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

In his book “Memori Bukan Memoir”, Maszlee said one of his goals during his tenure was to guarantee academic freedom, allowing lecturers to air their views on sensitive topics by amending regulations under Act 605, a law on discipline in statutory bodies.

He said the amendments to the regulations could be made through a ministerial order by the prime minister. He said he met Mahathir after discussions on the matter with the Public Services Commission.

“I’m not sure what was (Mahathir’s) further action because I did not see any seriousness on his part over the issue. We are also aware that AUKU, which restricts academic freedom, was the fruit of his labour when he was education minister at the time,” he said.

AUKU is the Malay acronym for the Universities and University Colleges Act which was among several laws Pakatan Harapan (PH) had promised to repeal in its 2018 election manifesto.


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