KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 27 — The government has no plans to relax the requirement for students to pass Bahasa Melayu and History to enter public universities, Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapha Sakmud said today.

During his winding-up speech on the Higher Education Ministry’s committee-level debate on Budget 2026 in the Dewan Rakyat, he said removing the requirements could result in professionals ignorant of the nation’s foundations.

“We do not want to produce, for instance, a lawyer who does not know history, to the point that he questions MA63. That would be shocking,” he told the Dewan Rakyat.

The issue was raised by Puncak Borneo MP Datuk Willie Mongin, who asked whether the requirement was causing Malaysia to lose out on specialised talent. 

He cited the hypothetical example of a top-scoring student who excels in science and additional mathematics but is barred from higher education because they failed Bahasa Melayu or History.

“He is intelligent in a specific field. So, for this group, what opportunities do we have to make use of their expertise instead of leaving them aside?” Mongin asked.

Earlier, Mustapha also clarified that the requirement was a corollary to the Education Ministry’s policies, which made it mandatory to pass both subjects.