(Petaling Jaya,Tuesday): DAPSY is deeply disappointed with the show-cause letter issued by UM Students Affairs Department (HEP) to a third-year accounting student, Wong Teck Chi, for sending an email to UM authorities and media regarding the Terence Gomez case.

Such unreasonable action from the UM Students Affairs Department (HEP) is designed to create a culture of fear among students, which is not beneficial to the nurturing of critical thinking, but it is also a demoralizing situation – as it shows that the university itself does not respect the wishes of the Prime Minister, who had claimed on 13^th June in a Malaysiakini report that Dr Terence Gomez should continue to speak out on matters concerning public interest.

This was conveyed by Dr Terence Gomez himself when he and Prime Minister met for 15 minutes at the Royal Air Force base in Subang on that day, following arrangements made by the premier’s special assistant. Dr Terence Gomez also quoted the Prime Minister as saying that, “when he told Malaysians ‘to speak the truth to me’, he had meant what he said.”

As such, it is totally mind-boggling to see that the UM Students Affairs Department act in such a contradictory manner – by issuing a show-cause letter to a university student who had spoken the truth.
 

The UM Students Affairs Department should focus more on more pressing matters such as ensuring that the upcoming campus elections are free, fair and democratic.