Alumni Objects To UM's Relocation

PETALING JAYA, June 14 (Bernama) -- The Universiti Malaya Alumni Association has objected to any plan to relocate the university to allow its present site to be redeveloped by a private company.
Its president, Datuk Noordin Abdul Razak, said the university sat on a strategic location and was complemented by the presence of public transport services like buses and LRT which had greatly benefited the students.
He was responding to a newspaper report on Tuesday that a company had submitted a bid to develop the site and to relocate the university to Sepang.
The university management was surprised with the report and said that it would not let the university to be relocated.

The Star_Universiti Malaya (UM) has no plan to relocate to its campus, describing the present location as one of its strengths.
“UM would like to state categorically that it is not relocating from its current location nor is it in any negotiations with any parties to that effect,” said the university's International and Corporate Relations Office director Associate Prof Dr Khoo Boo Teong in a statement yesterday.
According to a news report on Tuesday, property developer GuocoLand (Malaysia) Bhd, controlled by Tan Sri Quek Leng Chan, had made a bid for the UM grounds.
The report said that if the bid was approved, the development would complement GuocoLand's planned RM1.2bil Damansara City development project and the university would be relocated to Sepang, where the company has a landbank of 4,860ha.
A company source was quoted as saying that such a development was estimated to have a gross development value of RM10bil.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed also said it was “absolutely not true” that the university was relocating.
“UM's location is very historic. It is staying put,” he said after chairing the ministry's post-Cabinet meeting yesterday.
UM vice-chancellor Datuk Rafiah Salim expressed shock.
“The university is a heritage. You can't just pluck it out and put it somewhere else. The university management will not allow it,” she said from London yesterday.

tunku : nowadays everything is possible as long as there is good "kantau". may be someday we'll see muzium negara relocated to sepang to make way for development. I guess this idea came from the people who only think about money and those who agree with the suggestion is insane too.well it happens in this administration.hope that they'll realize soon.for Guocoland why don't you go and develop sepang rather than robbing in day light.