Allegations of intimidation and bullying against academicians at Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM) by the university's management have surfaced, with an academics association calling for the Higher Education Ministry to intervene and initiate an independent investigation.
The Malaysian Academic Association Congress (MAAC) claims lecturers, including members of UTeM’s Academic Staff Association (UTeMASA), were facing pressure after they had objected to certain circulars via a petition. The pressure, it said, included threats of disciplinary action.
In the statement, MAAC also viewed the issue as being in contravention of the Federal Constitution. The MAAC added that the university had directed academicians to identify themselves as signatories to the petition (dated Aug 27, 2024), sent to UTeM’s management, including its vice-chancellor.
Twentytwo13 understands that UTeMASA had submitted a petition to the management regarding two circulars – ‘Penetapan KPI Penerbitan Jurnal Berindeks kepada Pensyarah Universiti sebagai Kriteria Penilaian Tambahan dalam Laporan Penilaian Prestasi Tahunan (LPPT) atau Kaedah yang Setara di Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (PP Bil 11/2024)’ and ‘Pemakluman Terkini Perlaksanaan Sasaran Kerja Tahunan (SKT) Minima dan Status Laporan Penilaian Prestasi Tahunan (LPPT) bagi Pensyarah Universiti Tahun 2024 di Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (PP Bil 23/2024)’.
The circulars make it mandatory for academicians to publish in indexed journals every year. While over 500 staff, who are also members of UTeMASA, had objected via the petition, UTeMASA did not submit the signatures to the university to protect the interests of its members.
A source said the university’s legal department instead wrote to over 800 lecturers, teachers, and teaching engineers individually. The letter, dated Oct 7, stated that the Aug 27, 2024 petition was incomplete as it did not contain details needed for the university to respond.
One of the letters sighted by Twentytwo13 stated that UTeMASA members “have been confused by inaccurate information and that the information provided was not in line with the spirit of togetherness and responsibility to the university as staff”.
Recipients were required to provide their names, identity numbers, and faculties, and tick boxes to indicate:
a) whether they signed the petition dated Aug 27, 2024;
b) whether they agreed with the petition; and
c) if yes to (b), whether they wished to withdraw their consent.
The letter, signed by UTeM’s legal adviser Mohd Nizam Pavel, gave recipients seven days to reply. It stated that failure to do so would be construed as disobedience and could result in disciplinary action being initiated under the Statutory Bodies (Discipline and Surcharge) Act 2000, in particular rule 3(2)(e), rule 3(2)(f), rule 3(2)(g), rule 3(2)(i)and rule 3(2)(j). It is not known how many staff had responded.
In a statement yesterday, MAAC listed its main concerns as follows:
Intimidation and bullying – lecturers who signed the petition risked action being taken against them, creating fear, discouraging professional discussion, and weakening accountability.
Interference in UTeMASA – any move to reveal the list of members or signatories infringes on the right to form associations, violates privacy, and weakens the association.
Meddling by third parties – disclosure of documents or irrelevant investigations can amount to intimidation.
Impact on academia – a culture of fear affects teaching, research, publication, lecturers’ welfare, and the university’s reputation.
MAAC said Article 10(1) of the Federal Constitution guarantees freedom of speech and expression, the right to assemble peacefully, and the right to form associations, while Article 8(1) provides that all persons are equal before the law and entitled to equal protection of the law.
It added that under the Societies Act 1966, only the Registrar of Societies can instruct an association to furnish the names of office bearers and members, or a list of petition signatories. The university’s management, it said, has no such right.
MAAC also noted that Section 503 of the Penal Code (criminal intimidation) may apply if threats are made to compel someone to do something they are not legally bound to do.
“We urge any form of action regarding the petition to come to a halt until the independent investigation ends,” MAAC said, adding that it hoped the Higher Education Ministry would act quickly.
“We stand with the academics of UTeM and we hope UTeM’s management will also respect the voices of academic members and stop any actions that can be construed as intimidation. Universities must remain sanctuaries of knowledge, not arenas of pressure.”
It was previously reported that UTeMASA had filed a judicial review application against the two circulars. While the Melaka High Court dismissed the matter on July 11, an appeal has been filed at the Court of Appeal.
Twentytwo13 had reached out to UTeM. In a Whatsapp message to Twentytwo13, its media officer said the issues raised by MAAC are unfounded.
“We are in the process of taking legal action,” the message read.