USM's Student Parliament on the go

The student “parliament” in USM materialised with its first trial run at the Dewan Persidangan Utama, USM main campus on 25 September 2010 after receiving approval from the University's governing body, the LPU (Lembaga Pengarah Universiti).

The student “parliament” is called Dewan Perundingan Pelajar or Student Consultative Council and is governed by the university under the USM's constitution (section 64).

Deputy Vice Chancellor (BHEPP), Prof Datuk Omar Osman (pic below), while officiating the "parliament" wants students to take this opportunity to prove that 'we' are a role model for student leaders in this country and that we still lead, as the moto of the university says.

A total of 58 board members of "Yang Berhormat" had a chance to voice out their opinions and concerns of students in this first trial "Parliament". Out of the 58 members, 39 were chosen from the existing Student Representative Council (Majlis Perwakilan Pelajar, USM) while another 19 were selected from the 177 such societies, bodies and clubs in USM.

Prof Omar Osman said the "Parliament" will be given full liberty to operate on its own without the university's official participation.

Omar also stressed that all members of the Student Consultative Council has an equal status as a member of the board and that every member can debate without having to affiliate themselves with any party, body or society, whether government or NGOs.

This also means that there are no supporting nor opposition party in the "Parliament". Each and every member can debate in support or oppose one another based on the motion or issues proposed. More detailed news on the student "Parliament" can be found in the latest publication of Berita Kampus, 11 October 2010.

USM was the first university in the country to come out with a proposal to form a student “parliament” since a few years back.

Early this year in January, Deputy Higher Education Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah said he expected universities in the country to start their own “students’ parliament and to come out with their own models as the ultimate aim is to encourage intellectual discussions amongst students.

Saifuddin said the proposal came from his “teh tarik” meetings with university students two weeks earlier which was organised through his own Facebook page. He added that the formation of the “parliament” will mark a new milestone in increasing the participation of undergraduates in discussions concerning government policies.


Initially, the idea was initiated by USM's Vice Chancellor, Prof Dzulkifli Abdul Razak back in 2004, calling for the formation of such a body with the “constituencies” comprising all the country’s universities.