Aim not to owe anybody money at life’s end
MY grandfather died when I was 13. Weeks before he passed away, he told my mum, “I don’t owe anyone a single cent”.
He was a mechanic. Worked his way up from lowly apprentice to owning a workshop that was essentially a slab of concrete underneath a huge tree. He also went from sharing a house with his siblings and riding a beat-up old motorcycle to having a low-cost flat and driving a small Datsun. He was a loyal sibling and a loving if stoic father, and he didn’t owe anyone a single cent when he passed away. Not even the banks.
Growing up with that story in my head, and having parents who had paid off every loan by the time I entered society, imagine how shocked I was to realise I had friends who were intentionally ignoring their PTPTN (National Higher Education Fund Corp) loans!
The fund’s chairman recently said: “If you can afford a car, you can afford to repay your PTPTN loan.” I was aghast to think that there are actually people who think a car is a justifiable reason to skip out on their student loan repayments.
Imagine this: You need a car and so you get a loan from the bank for RM50,000. But you don’t feel like repaying it because you’d rather go on a holiday, or you mistakenly believe that’s your parents’ money, or whatever delusional reason you make up to justify defaulting on your loan. What happens? The bank takes your car away and your credit is ruined forever.
Now, a new scenario: You need a university education. You get a loan from PTPTN for RM50,000. You successfully graduate with a degree and land your first job, but you decide you can’t be bothered to repay the loan because you’d rather go on holiday, or mistakenly believe it’s your God-given right to borrow money and not repay it (aka stealing). What happens? The government has to drastically lower the quantum future generations can borrow and put strict measures in place to force borrowers to repay their loans, and get hated for it.
In simple terms, it’s like you lending money to a friend who splurges it on Birkin bags and then suffering insults when you ask for the money back. It’s YOUR money and yet you’re shamed for wanting it back. Does that make sense?
If you owe the bank money but your mum falls ill and you can’t afford the instalments, the bank will still take your car away. But if the same scenario happens with PTPTN, the education fund is willing to negotiate with borrowers and work something out.
So why are there still people who are not repaying their PTPTN loans?
Personally, I think it’s a misguided sense of entitlement that’s unfortunately prevalent in our society. It’s one thing to not be able to afford the repayments, but the bile rises up my throat when I hear of defaulters who choose to buy iPhones and go to Japan over paying their loans.
My grandfather and I were raised on principles that dictated good values, like repaying your debts. I shudder to think I live in a world and exist among peers who believe it’s acceptable to owe money and shame the lender for wanting the money back.
When my time comes, I want to say to my grandchildren, “I don’t owe anyone a single cent”. I wonder what those loan defaulters will tell their grandkids. Maybe, “I never repaid my student loans, that’s why you can’t afford to go to university”?
My grandfather and I were raised on principles that dictated good values, like repaying your debts.
Irene Chooi
IRENE CHOOI Puchong, Selangor