PUTRAJAYA: Amendments to the Universities and University Colleges Act will be significant and not merely cosmetic.

This was the response of Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin to claims that the bill for the amendments are "superficial".

"To say that they are just cosmetic changes is not true. It is something that will really change the university environment," he said.

The ministry is looking to amending 61 of the 165 clauses in the act and the bill will be tabled for second reading today.

"Actually, the university environment will more or less stay the same but certain parties are politicising it (the issue), saying the students are being repressed," he said after launching the "Fly the Jalur Gemilang" campaign in conjunction with the 51st National Day celebrations.
He also said the amendments to the Private Higher Educational Institutions Act, to be tabled for second reading next week, was to boost the quality of private colleges.

"The enrolment of the private colleges is already 340,000 compared to 360,000 in public universities. Their admission of international students is also at 30,000 while public universities have 10,000 foreign students.

"The amendment will make it easier for us to develop and monitor the private colleges," he said.

The campaign saw 300 cyclists from five public universities cycling from the ministry here to Universiti Putra Malaysia in Kajang, a few kilometres away.