KLANG, Aug 20 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said today that the Bill to repeal the Universities and University Colleges Act 1971 (UUCA) will be tabled this year.
Anwar said that the move is a core component of government efforts to dismantle a “culture of fear” currently permeating higher education institutions as well as to empower students and academics to engage in critical discourse.
“Students are afraid of lecturers, lecturers are afraid of deans, deans are afraid of rectors, rectors are afraid of ministers, ministers are afraid of the prime minister, and the prime minister is afraid of students. That is not healthy,” he said quoting a friend and scholar, Taufiq Ismail.
“We have to be able to ask questions — politely and with good manners. Agree or disagree, but with adab (manners),” Anwar said during a dialogue with students following the launch of the Himpunan Anak Muda Kebangsaan (HAMKA) Antarabangsa 2026.
Referring to the UUCA — hinting that it was created to control students like himself, who spoke up — he said the move (repeal) was already in progress and was done to give university students greater space to develop, including to think, discuss and express their views maturely.
“Now this Anwar has become prime minister, (then) change the law (UUCA). There was a suggestion to change it a little, there were changes here and there, but I disagreed (with the way the changes were made).
“Give space to these young people. They are already adults, already mature.
“Will they make mistakes? Of course they will make mistakes, then educate them and correct them,” he said when opening the 2026 International Hamka Anwar Dialogue and official opening ceremony here today.
Anwar said he had told the Cabinet yesterday that he wanted the UUCA to be abolished in its entirety rather than amended again.
“Yesterday, at the Cabinet meeting, I said I want to repeal it altogether,” he said.
Anwar later explained that the issue was not simply about removing a law, but about changing the culture within universities and creating greater room for intellectual development.
He added that universities should not be places where people are afraid to question authority, adding that disagreements are part of developing knowledge and understanding.
He linked this to the Islamic principle of ikhtilaf, or differences of opinion, saying there could be disagreement in Islam, but it should be conducted with adab.
“This is the challenge,” he said, stressing the need for new strength, the strength of knowledge.
Explaining it further, he said the government also wanted to give young people the opportunity to develop that intellectual strength, while recognising that mistakes were part of the learning process.
He said students should therefore be given room to grow rather than being restricted out of fear that they might make mistakes.
The move marks a shift away from repeatedly amending the UUCA or Auku, which has governed Malaysia’s public universities and university colleges since 1971, towards a full repeal of the Act and the introduction of new legislation.
