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MALAYSIAN Anti-Corruption Watch (MCW) has called for a comprehensive forensic audit and an independent investigation following revelations in the Auditor General’s Report 1/2026 highlighting serious financial irregularities and governance lapses at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.
Its president, Jais Abdul Karim, said the audit findings exposed troubling patterns that point to systemic weaknesses in financial controls, oversight, and accountability across the country’s higher education ecosystem.
According to the report, unreturned research grant balances total RM183.11 million across 7,904 projects spanning four ministries.
The Ministry of Higher Education recorded the largest outstanding balance, amounting to RM110.67 million covering 7,823 projects in five major research universities.
“More concerning, nearly half of these balances have been overdue for five to nine years, while some exceed ten years.
“Therefore, a thorough forensic audit must be conducted on all grants overdue by more than five years, as well as all collaborative agreements involving student fee collections,” he said in a statement today.
The report also highlighted specific financial irregularities at UKM, including RM50.74 million in student fees collected without legal authority through cooperative channels and RM32.36 million in revenue unrecorded as university income.
MCW noted further irregular expenditures of RM6.69 million, such as commissions paid to unauthorised agents, corporate credit card use by ineligible individuals, and conflicts of interest involving university officers.
“An independent investigation is necessary to determine whether there is any abuse of power, gross negligence, or violations of financial law.
“If criminal elements or misappropriation of power are found, the case must be referred to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission without compromise,” Jais added.
He urged the Ministry of Higher Education to present a national recovery plan to strengthen research grant monitoring and financial controls at public universities, ensuring accountability reaches the highest levels of management rather than merely resulting in internal staff rotations.
“Public universities are not private companies. They are institutions of public trust. Research funds and student fees are public money and the money of families who sacrifice for their children’s education.
“When grants go unmonitored for years and student fees are not properly recorded, it is no longer a routine administrative issue. It is a governance failure,” he said.
MCW reaffirmed that it will continue monitoring follow-up actions by the Ministry and the universities involved, emphasising the public’s right to know the true status of public funds and the individuals responsible. - February 25, 2026
