Fahmi Fadzil criticises opposition leaders for questioning IIUM’s credibility in KL mayor election study.
PETALING JAYA: Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil expressed his disappointment over the actions of opposition leaders who questioned the capability of the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) to conduct a study related to the proposed election of the Kuala Lumpur mayor.
Fahmi said the matter has not been formally discussed by the Cabinet and that he was only briefly informed by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories), Hannah Yeoh, without any paper or memorandum being presented for Cabinet consideration.
“There was no discussion, only a basic notification that a study is being conducted by IIUM. There are no results yet and nothing that can be tabled to the Cabinet for consideration,” he said at a post-Cabinet meeting media conference today.
He added that no decision could be made at this stage, as the study remains in its early phase and has yet to produce any official findings.
“Nothing was tabled at the Cabinet meeting either. It is far too early for discussion. When I was asked about this issue yesterday, there was nothing that could be presented,” he said.
Fahmi said he was therefore disappointed with the attitude of certain parties, particularly PAS secretary-general Datuk Seri Takiyuddin Hassan, for questioning IIUM’s credibility as a higher learning institution capable of conducting the study.
“In my view, this is not a good attitude. IIUM should be regarded as a capable and credible educational institution to carry out such research,” he said.
He stressed that IIUM is an important institution that has produced many leaders, not only for Malaysia but also for other countries.
“Looking down on educational institutions such as IIUM is a very bad and irresponsible attitude,” he said.
Fahmi also described the remarks as politically motivated and said such statements should not come from a party leader.
“This is the attitude of a politician — the secretary-general of a party that has truckloads of candidates for the prime minister’s post — yet he can still display such behaviour. To me, that is a very poor attitude,” he said.
“Do not look down on our educational institutions, especially IIUM,” he added.
Fahmi reiterated that any assessment or decision should only be made once the study is completed and its full findings are presented to the Cabinet.
Fahmi was responding to Takiyuddin’s remarks questioning why IIUM was selected to conduct the study on the proposed election of the Kuala Lumpur mayor instead of other “more senior” universities such as the University of Malaya (UM), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) or Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM).
On Tuesday, Yeoh told the media that the study on holding elections for the Kuala Lumpur mayor is being conducted by IIUM academics, describing the university as a credible academic institution.
