SHAH ALAM, 19 May: There is no question of ‘biting the hand that feeds you’ for Dyana Sofya Mohd Daud, who will compete in the Teluk Intan parliamentary by-election under the DAP ticket, because the government’s move to build universities is to produce people who are useful to the country.
Politics lecturer, Assoc Prof Dr Mohamad Agus Yusoff, is of the opinion that the participation of former graduates of MARA University of Technology (UiTM) is the choice of the individual and is not a big deal if they have differences in opinion.
He said this in response to the statement by the Member of Parliament for Lenggong, Datuk Shamsul Anuar Nasarah, which he deemed absurd.
“The leader’s statement does not make sense to me. If we enter a public university, can we not have a different political view from the ruling government?
“After graduation, even if they do not support the ruling government, we still have to feel grateful that the education they received allows them to make choices and be actively involved in politics,” he said through his Facebook page.
Shamsul Anuar reportedly said “Dyana Sofya received education at UiTM, an institution born out of the New Economic Policy (NEP) and is fought for by Umno, unfortunately she is not only ungrateful but is also biting the hand that gave her the opportunity to learn and so on prior to this”.
Mohammad Agus explained that the government should change their approach to understand the aspirations of students to return to their support instead of issuing ‘strange’ statements.
In the meantime, the Member of Parliament for Seputeh, Teresa Kok, in another statement, said that Dyana Sofya may be the new fear of Umno if she wins and becomes the youngest Member of Parliament in the country’s history.
“She is labeled as a traitor and is severely attacked. She had stood her ground and ‘roared like a tigress’,” she added.
In the Teluk Intan by-election, which will take place on May 31, Dyana will contest against the President of Gerakan, Datuk Mah Siew Keong.
At the 13th General Election, Siew Keong lost to the DAP candidate, Seah Leong Peng, by a majority of 7,313 votes.
The Teluk Intan by-election is being held as its representative, Seah, 48, passed away due to cancer at the University Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) on May 1.
