GOMBAK, April 11 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today ruled out any possibility of raising taxes as a way to increase funding for education, as he addressed university students who sought Putrajaya’s affirmation to commit to public education reform.
Anwar instead said public universities must be “creative” in finding ways to finance themselves.
The Anwar government is reportedly mulling an income-based system that would charge richer families more for tuition fees, although when it plans to roll it out remains unclear.
“In this country public universities almost entirely depend on government funding, and the government means taxpayers,” he said in response to a student from an International Islamic University student who asked if the government could increase assistance for the public tertiary education system.
“The government means your parents and your families have to pay more, and I’m not prepared to raise taxes for them because it would make it more difficult for them.”
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