Seremban college with no students in class
03 Nov 2006
Deborah Loh


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PUTRAJAYA: It was a degree mill with a difference. None of the 380 foreign students attended classes — they were too busy working illegally to show up.

But they usually trooped in at the end of the "course" to collect their diplomas in management or computer science.

Immigration and Higher Education Ministry officers who raided the premises at Seremban 2 yesterday were shocked to see empty classes.

There were eight lecturers but not a single member of the management was present.

There is a price that both the students and management will have to pay for trying to fool the authorities.

The students have until Thursday to report to the Immigration Department for deportation to their respective home countries.

If they fail to do so, they will be detained and have to pay a hefty penalty for breach of regulations.

The students comprise Bangladeshis, Pakistanis, Nigerians, Sri Lankans, Indian nationals, Chinese nationals and a Filipino.

As for the management, it may be blacklisted by the Higher Education Ministry for allowing the situation to continue.

This means that the Home Affairs Ministry will no longer allow the college to bring in foreign students. Neither will it be allowed to open branches.

The racket came to light after residents in the vicinity of the shoplot housing the college became suspicious when they noticed that the college was too quiet to be in operation.

They tipped off the Immigration Department which carried out surveillance on the college and noticed very little student activity.

Immigration enforcement director Datuk Ishak Mohamed said yesterday the raid was carried out to ascertain if the college was a bona fide educational institution.

"This could be yet another case of foreigners abusing their student passes to work illegally. It is alarming as the number is high and involves all the students in the college."

Ishak said the department was trying to trace the students and members of the college management.

Home Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Radzi Sheikh Ahmad and Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed recently agreed that their staff should conduct joint operations on colleges suspected of bringing in illegal workers.

Yesterday’s raid was the first joint operation between the two ministries.

Source