To date, the National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) has not been able to recover RM15 billion, its collection target for money loaned out since it was set up 19 years ago.
According to Datuk Shamsul Anuar Nasarah, chairman of PTPTN, between 1997 and February 2016, the organisation was only able to achieve RM7.49 billion in collection, less than 50% of its target.
“Although there has been an increase in the amount collected monthly by PTPTN through various approaches such as salary deductions, we have not yet achieved the target.
“Since PTPTN was set up until now, we have given out RM55 billion to borrowers and we targeted getting back at least RM15 billion,” he said in a report by Bernama.
To recover the loans, PTPTN was still exploring the implementation of salary deduction to find the best way to do it in other sectors, Shamsul Anuar added.
“We use different approaches for different sectors, but what is important is to achieve our target,” he said.
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Many PTPTN loan borrowers turn to their Employees Provident Fund (EPF) savings to pay their student loan.
Based on Section 54(6) of the EPF Act 1991, EPF members are allowed to withdraw their EPF savings to finance higher education for themselves or their children, including PTPTN loan.
In the first quarter of 2016 (from January until April), EPF has received 33,824 withdrawal savings applications, with an estimated amount of RM235.7 million to settle PTPTN debts.
This was an increase compared to 2015, where a total of 26,568 EPF applications, equivalent to RM209.2 million, were received, said the Ministry of Finance a separate report by Bernama.
“The requirements are based on the savings amount in Account 2, studies fee or the education loan – whichever is the lowest,” said a written reply distributed at Dewan Rakyat last week.
This comes after a request by Ahmad Lai Bujang (BN-Sibuti), a Member of Parliament, for the Finance Minister to state the number of EPF members who have used Account 2 to settle PTPTN debts.
The ministry replied that the overall number of approved withdrawal applications were 65,787, worth RM578.2 million, were made by EPF contributors in 2015 for education funding.
