The decision to temporarily freeze PTPTN loans to Universiti Selangor (Unisel) students temporarily is fair, said Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin on Thursday.
Muhyiddin said Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Khaled Nordin's decision to stall PTPTN loans at the Selangor government-owned university was to test if Selangor was capable of providing free education as claimed.
"The freeze is only temporary, it is not a cancellation. Maybe the minister (Khaled) wants to see if Selangor can give free education and do away with PTPTN, that's fair," he said at a press conference here on Thursday.
Muhyiddin, who is also Education Minister, added: "There is no such thing as 'free'. Someone has to pay for it."
Muhyiddin said that if it turned out that the students at Unisel really needed the loans, it would show that Pakatan Rakyat's vow to abolish the loans did not take into account the student's interest.
"I believe the minister is a smart person and he will reinstate the loans if he is satisfied that the students really need them," he said.
