Menteri Pengajian Tinggi, Datuk Seri Khaled Noordin telah membuat kenyataan di dalam The Star seperti berikut:
Varsity students may not get to take part in politics: Khaled
PUTRAJAYA: University students are not likely to be allowed to participate in the country’s politics.
In an about turn, Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Khaled Noordin said allowing students to be influenced by politics would be negative as their focus should be on their studies.
“University students should concentrate on their studies and not on politics.
“The world has so many problems. We want the universities to provide the right role for studies, We do not want political parties to come in,” he said when asked if the AUKU Act would be amended to allow university students to participate in politics.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak when speaking to youths recently, said he was open to the idea of having university students involved in politics provided it was well studied and brought more good than harm. Khaled also concurred and said they were still studying the matter.
Khaled, when met at the Hari Raya open house in Putrajaya Friday, said they wanted universities to provide education and solutions without the influence of political parties, adding that the matter could still be discussed and debated academically as what Najib said.
Saya kira jawapan di dalam bentuk puisi nukilan penyair tersohor rantau ini, iaitu Taufiq Ismail adalah memadai untuk menjelaskan “kekalutan” sang Menteri:
Takut 66 (1966), Takut (1998)
Mahasiswa takut pada dosen (pensyarah)
Dosen takut pada dekan
Dekan takut pada rektor
Rektor takut pada menteri
Menteri takut pada presiden
Presiden takut pada mahasiswa
pelajar2 harus diberi peluang menimba ilmu secukupnya tanpa gangguan politik. Mereka mendapat tempat diuniversity pun adalah atas perancangan kerajaan yang ada. Setelah ilmu penuh di dada barulah mereka bebas untuk untuk berpolitik.
Banyak implikasi negatif jika mereka berpolitik.