Friday, July 25, 2008

JPA doctors don't want to come back

Yet another example of how JPA scholars are blatantly flouting their bonds. The Star reported that '236 medical graduates studying overseas under Public Service Department scholarships refused to return home to work.'

15 comments:

Avatar said...

I am sure the working conditions for professionals are much better.

Further, they are valued for their contributions and expertise, rather than *other* irrelevant skills.

Cost of living would be relatively good as they are getting good pay for the work they are doing.

How can one blame them?

My Blog: http://wonderwealthwisdom.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

re: avatar

eerrr, they are breaking the law! they breached the terms in the contract they voluntarily signed! and you defend them by saying "how can one blame them"?

the contributions are valued, cost of living issues are irrelevant. they are practically stealing from the people. if this does not amount to treason i dunno what is.

Anonymous said...

I met my friend in carrefour the other day. I asked him how much it cost him for his son's medical studies over six years in Russia ( including all costs tuition and everything)
He answered: RM 800,000.00. That is close to a million!

If our JPA allows these renegade scholars to be set free it is a loss to us. The scholars have a duty to return and serve the country.

If not JPA directors and the scholarship awarding bodies should be decapitated for not taking legal action to recover the money

Anonymous said...

To Anonymous,

I'm pretty sure your friend bluff u...because my cousin is studying in Russia for Medic, the tuition fees for the medic degree is around RM100000.00 (Hundred Thousands only). It's much cheaper, that's why people choose Russia.

Only other countries like UK, Australia will cost you near a million for a Med degree, certainly not Russia!

Anonymous said...

i have spoken to jpa scholars who break their contract and contact jpa to ask how to pay the money they owe. apparently, you can send repeated emails to jpa asking the same question, and jpa does not follow up. if even honest scholars actually have difficulty paying back, can you imagine jpa doing anything about those who have no intention of paying?

plato's disciples said...

I think it can quite run up tp 800K, because my eng degree alone has cost me 800K and that was only for 4 years...

anyway, better or not the conditions in overseas you have obligations and especially when you're a doctor...should have think about that before irresponsibly signing the contract.

CJ said...

Cannot be RM800000, unless the kid is buying himself a house or a fancy car over there. With that kind of money you can study in Australia already. No need to compromise on quality of institution. You can even pay an education in Cambridge with living cost for RM800000.

Anyway, as much as i like to, i will refrain from judging those medical undergrads who decide not to come back. If they refuse to pay up the damage then its too much. Otherwise, let them be. It's a matter of their own future, and our Bolehland really isnt that promising, with dubious policies in every field that you can mention. Someone used to being credited for their merit will find it tough to swallow coming back home to endure obvious injustice and favouritism. Not to mention the setting of hospital and postgraduate opportunities.

It's like showing them really hot girls who are both smart and possess great personality, and most importantly, within their reach, but telling them too bad you have some village girl who is bad tempered and superficial, already engaged to you.

Of course we can say too bad u signed the agreement, but we are not the ones living with that tramp for the rest of our lives. As long as they pay up (I think the damage shd really cover the cost of inflation too), they are free to go.

Who knows we might get some high achievers, even laureates of some sort, from these ppl. Malaysia is always happy to claim merits for their attainments.

Bringing them back to our folds might not be good. Who knows they will end up as stupid as those ppl who buy Mercedes using Rakyat's money and give pea-brained excuses.

Really messed up.

Anonymous said...

i was a jpa scholar - and then later had my bond transferred over to a local uni where i taught and took on further scholarships for more studying.

I have since broken my contract. have left the public education system for many reasons, all very clearly justified (especially to my own conscience!).

Am very aware of the privilege given to me, perhaps at the expense of others more deserving (though my conscience is clear on that too. I earned my scholarship and delivered its worth).

I am in the country, still working very closely with the government and making full use of the education the government paid for me. In fact, I feel that I am doing more good from outside the system than I can from within.

As for the bond? I am paying it all back - made my first payment before being asked to.

In the first few months since leaving the government payroll I actually continued my contributions without pay, incurring my own costs and all the while paying back my debt!

So. Just as the non-recipients of scholarships are enraged by these defaulters, those of us who DO come back to give back to the nation, and yet still paying back the cost of breaching a contract, are also not happy with such blatant ingratitude.

Anonymous said...

Shouldn't this be straightforward? If you took a loan, you pay. If you dont pay, you're in the wrong.
Talk about hard to contact JPA etc. is irrelevant. If you wanted to pay you would pay. If you want to serve the nation, you serve. If you dont want to come, it's your decision, and no need to blame anyone.

Anonymous said...

Selfish JPA scholars, period.

Avatar said...

Hi All,

Okay, I need to explain myself. I don't agree with them breaching their contract. It's unethical since they got their qualifications due to JPA scholarship.

However, I do understand why they don't wish to come back either.

Rgds

Anonymous said...

To anonymous up up there,

Medic in russia cost only rm130,000 la,ur frend might had sent 4-5 children to study gua since u said rm800k..
Im very sure coz i intend to pursuit medic at oversea,and russia and indonesia among the cheapest place to go,and its recognized by malaysia.
Rg JPA scholarship matter,its unethical to breach the contract,but why wanna come back if they could earn more at oversea?..this is not the prob of moral or ethic,but closer to survival and living..choose what best..

Anonymous said...

In my opinion, hands down, the JPA scholars that refuses to fufill the conditions of the scholarship are wrong, no matter how you look at it.

First, they sign a contract, they are obliged to stick to it. Yes, ppl argue about poor working conditions, poor job prospects, low pay etc etc. But it is up to the scholars to find out about what they are in for when they sign the contract. No one will give a damn about a businessman who is stupid enough to sign a bad contract. If he does, that is his own fault.

Clearly, it seems that this scholars have long decide to take the money and run.. Since they are breaking the contract, ie Fraud?.. The govt should pursue legal means to arrest them and bring them back into the country. They deserve no pity, leave a crime record in their cv.

We are talking about taxpayer's money.. Money that you or your parents pay to the govt, hard earned money.. Should we allow this ppl to take them and not pay back?

Anonymous said...

"...no matter how you look at it." This is pure ignorance. Not everything in this world are black and white.

I'm not defending anyone, but just note a few things:
- According to the contract, the scholarship recipient should return to the country and serve X years with the Y. If he/she fails to do so, Y has the right to demand full compensation from the recipient. Effectively, it says, if you don't want to work for them, the scholarship will technically be considered as a study loan. Personally, I don't think there's any breach of contract. The recipient still fulfils the contract if he/she pays the exact amount.

- Ethical?? Ethical decision may not be the best decision. We, human being tend to choose whatever is best for us.

- You can't force people to work. I'm sure you don't want to be bombarded for no good reasons by these doctors the next time you visit a hospital. They are on a scholarship, not a death contract. It's not just about "work or die".

- As a taxpayer myself, I think this is better than giving the money to a government that practices c*rruption. These recipients have worked hard, and I'm sure they can contribute to humanity in one way or another, even if it's outside Malaysia. If they can benefit other mankind, I don't see why not.

Regards,
THE Anonymous

Anonymous said...

I was a JPA scholar. Being from Sarawak I was educated in English medium at the time and unfortunately did not have the opportunity to take up Bahasa Malaysia. After 8 years on probation at a local university, I resigned and joined the private sector. JPA was quick to the draw and I appeared in court several times to plead my case. In the end, I paid the fine in full (plus legal expenses).