Kamalanathan gesa pengesahan bertulis syarat ekuiti Bumiputera untuk pusat tuisyen

Former Education Minister P Kamalanathan has urged the Ministry of Education (KPM) to issue written guidance stating that the minimum 30% Bumiputera equity requirement for learning centers has been abolished. Responding to KPM's decision to scrap this requirement, Kamalanathan called for the ministry to clarify whether the change applies to new applications and centers that wish to renew their licenses.

He also urged the ministry to revise all related guidelines on its portal to avoid confusion. "The KPM's decision to remove the minimum 30% Bumiputera equity requirement for private education institutions under its purview is the right decision for national education," he stated in a statement. Kamalanathan further noted that learning centers should be evaluated based on the quality of teachers, student safety, and learning outcomes, rather than on the ethnic composition of their shareholders.

The former Hulu Selangor MP expressed gratitude to KPM and the Investment, Trade, and Industry Ministry for hearing the concerns of governors, parents, and stakeholders, and ensuring the education sector remains open to those who wish to contribute to national education development. Recently, KPM announced that the minimum 30% Bumiputera shareholding requirement would no longer be a prerequisite for sole-proprietor businesses operating private education institutions under its department.

This came in the wake of discussions with the Investment, Trade, and Industry Ministry, aimed at addressing sectoral needs and ensuring an open invitation for all parties interested in contributing to national education development. The issue emerged earlier this week after Petaling Jaya MP Lee Chean Chung exposed KPM guidelines allegedly mandating that learning centers must hold 30% Bumiputera equity to renew their licenses for next year.

Parents Action Group in Education Melaka questioned the requirement, which applies to businesses that have operated for decades, to maintain their 30% shareholding to continue operations. Independent scholar Sharifah Munirah Alatas argued that the criterion risks stoking ethnic sentiments in the education sector and may not necessarily encourage robust Bumiputera entrepreneurship.