KUALA LUMPUR: Nealry half of National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) borrowers who have yet to make repayments are recipients of the Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah (STR) cash aid, says Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir.
The Higher Education Minister revealed that as of Aug 31, PTPTN data showed that 415,109 borrowers had not made any loan repayments.
Of these, he said, 189,580 borrowers, or 45.7%, were recipients of STR, while the remaining 225,529 borrowers, or 54.3%, were not.
“PTPTN currently only holds data collected at the time of application, when borrowers typically had no income,” Zambry said in a parliamentary written reply.
This was in response to Khairil Nizam Khirudin (PN-Jerantut) who asked the minister to state how many PTPTN borrowers are currently employed with a salary exceeding RM3,000 but have never made any repayments.
Khairil also asked the minister on the number of borrowers from the Jerantut constituency.
Zambry said that within the Jerantut parliamentary constituency alone, 1,710 borrowers had not made repayments, with the total outstanding amount reaching RM38.17mil as of the same date.