“We challenge the government to abolish all unpaid PTPTN loans to uphold the spirit of free education,” said PKR Youth’s student bureau chairman Fahmi Zainol in a statement today.

The government has said that 1.25 million borrowers who failed to repay their education loans have been listed in the Central Credit Reference Information System.

Fahmi said if the government could not abolish all outstanding loans, it could at least stop borrowers from being listed.

Students and graduates were already burdened by the rising cost of living, and a listing would only aggravate their problem as job opportunities were diminishing.

“Now, they are blocked from acquiring basic necessities such as a house and a vehicle,” he said.

Fahmi said the failure of 1.25 million students to repay their loans denoted a failure of the education fund management.

PTPTN chairman Shamsul Anuar Nasarah has said that the 1.25 million borrowers were listed in the CCRIS in stages since June 16 last year. This was to encourage borrowers to be more disciplined and responsible in repaying loans.