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By Daniel John Jambun, 6-8-2025
GABUNGAN Rakyat Sabah (GRS) propagandists are once again misleading the public — this time by claiming that forgiving education loans like PTPTN and Yayasan Sabah debts would “upset” the state’s finances. This is not only economically dishonest, but morally bankrupt coming from a government that has mismanaged public funds while doing little to improve access to education.
Let’s be clear: investing in the future of Sabahan students is not a burden — it is a duty. Here are the facts they won’t tell you:
1. The State Government Doesn’t Pay PTPTN
PTPTN is a federal agency. The Sabah State Government does not carry the burden of PTPTN’s national loan portfolio. What Warisan proposed is a state-federal collaboration, potentially including:
Interest waivers for B40 borrowers,
Partial settlement schemes,
State co-funding for debt forgiveness of Sabahans who meet specific criteria (e.g., public service, academic excellence, rural hardship).
It is disingenuous for GRS to suggest Sabah’s reserves will be “drained” by a policy not even under state jurisdiction alone.
2. Sabah Has the Fiscal Space — If GRS Weren’t Hoarding or Wasting
GRS boasts about having RM8.6 billion in reserves — yet refuses to use even a fraction of it for human capital development.
To put this in perspective:
Writing off RM200 million in Yayasan Sabah loans (even in full) would represent less than 2.5% of the state's reserves.
That is less than what GRS paid out in compensation to politically-connected contractors in the RM315 million water scandal — a bill the public never agreed to.
GRS would rather pay failed concessionaires and mineral cronies than relieve the financial burden of struggling graduates.
3. Debt Forgiveness Strengthens, Not Weakens, the Economy
Numerous global studies show that targeted education loan forgiveness:
Increases disposable income,
Stimulates local spending,
Encourages entrepreneurship and home ownership,
Improves mental health and productivity.
Forgiving education debt is not a loss — it is a reinvestment that creates multiplier effects. Every ringgit freed from loan repayment is a ringgit spent in the local economy — in Sabah’s rural towns, family businesses, and housing market.
4. Yayasan Sabah Has the Resources — If Properly Managed
Let us not forget: Yayasan Sabah was once the wealthiest state foundation in Malaysia, owning over 1 million hectares of land and massive commercial assets.
The real question is not “can we afford to help our students?” but “where did Yayasan Sabah’s money go?”
Some RM872 million of Yayasan Sabah’s money has reportedly been lost through fraud, pointing to catastrophic financial mismanagement and lack of oversight.
Hundreds of millions in timber concessions were quietly handed out to cronies.
Large plots of Yayasan land were sold off below market value.
Its education funds were gutted to feed political patronage.
To rebuild its financial capacity, the Warisan government must take back all the hundreds thousand hectares of mineral mining concessions given to outsiders and cronies, and place them under Yayasan Sabah’s stewardship. This would ensure that the wealth generated from Sabah’s natural resources is reinvested in education, healthcare, and rural development — not siphoned off by private interests.
Debt forgiveness is affordable and achievable — if the foundation is reclaimed, restructured, and refocused on its original mission.
5. Sarawak Is Already Offering Free Tertiary Education
In Sarawak, the state government has already pledged to make higher education free through Yayasan Sarawak, including:
Full scholarships for local students,
Hostel and living allowance subsidies,
Debt forgiveness for underprivileged students.
If Sarawak can do it with RM41 billion in reserves, why can’t Sabah — with RM8.6 billion — even offer partial relief?
GRS wants to copy Sarawak’s rhetoric but refuses to match Sarawak’s commitment.
6. Warisan Did Not Have Full Term or Full Federal Support
Let us also remember: Warisan governed during a time of federal hostility and pandemic crisis. In just two short years, it:
Expanded scholarships through Yayasan Sabah,
Increased allocations for rural school repairs,
Proposed education reforms to de-politicize allocations.
Had Warisan been given a full 5-year term and federal cooperation, PTPTN relief for Sabahans would have been a reality — not just a recycled campaign promise.
GRS USES "FINANCIAL STABILITY" AS A COVER FOR POLICY COWARDICE
The GRS argument is not about finance — it is about lack of political will, misplaced priorities, and incompetent.
They can afford to:
Sign RM1 billion sukuk bonds,
Pay RM315 million in compensation without court challenge,
Spend RM30 million on publicity stunts and non-transparent grants...
...but not afford to help a young Sabahan who owes RM30,000 in PTPTN debt?
That is not fiscal responsibility. That is moral failure.
Daniel John Jambun is President of
Change Advocate Movement Sabah (CAMOS)#~Borneo Herald ™
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