PETALING JAYA: MCA Youth has hit out at the Pakatan Harapan government for making false promises as regards to the National Higher Education Fund (PTPTN).
Before the 14th general election (GE14), Pakatan Harapan had promised to postpone repayment for borrowers until their salary reached at least RM4,000 a month, said MCA Youth chairman Nicole Wong Siaw Ting.
Instead, she said the government has changed course after just six months in power.
Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng when tabling Budget 2019 announced that PTPTN borrowers earning at least RM1,000 will have to face progressive deductions starting from 2% and going up to 15%.
In a press statement on Thursday (Nov 8), Wong lambasted the policy u-turn and said the government had disregarded the trust and mandate given by the voters.
"This new policy on monthly salary deduction will cause financial pressure to borrowers,” she said before asking, "did the government measure the capability of these borrowers to repay loans after entering the workforce fresh out of universities, especially with rising cost of living?"
The newly-elected Youth chairman also pointed out that under the Barisan Nasional government, all borrowers, regardless of background who obtained first class honours were exempted from repayment. This, she said, was done to encourage students to study hard.
But now, the government has announced that only students from the B40 group who obtain first-class honours will be eligible to convert their loans into scholarships.
"Most of the PTPTN borrowers are from low- or middle-income families, the government policy on monthly salary deduction will increase the financial pressure of borrowers," said Wong.
She added that with these policy shifts, "the people and students can now see for themselves how Pakatan Harapan manages the country, and how they break their promises".
-The Star-
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