Pampered.

Photo courtesy of Nazmi Abdul Jalil.

MIU recently received a new Vice-Chancellor, Tan Sri Dr. Mohamed Salleh Mohamed Yasin, who is apparently the brother of Malaysia's current Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin bin Yasin. He happens to knows my mother, as they worked together during his time at the Malaysian Qualification Association (MQA).

So anyway, he gave his first address to the students earlier today. He seems pleasant enough, and has that air of achievement that makes you feel that he's the perfect person to take this university forward. And judging by his truckload of past experiences, which include being one of the pioneers of UKM's medical faculty all those years ago, you have to think that he'll do just that.

At the end of his speech we had a brief Q&A session. I just sat quietly in my third-row seat in that lecture hall, wondering what on earth the type of questions we were meant to ask were.

As always, there was an overall reluctance from the hundred or so students sitting comfortably in their seats. The Tan Sri then decided to randomly call upon one of the international students, and the lucky guy was an engineering student from Kolkata, India.

My questions about the questions were then answered, as the guy started to complain about the lack of 'edible' food for him and his fellow international students. Indeed, my Zambian classmate later remarked that she had often seen Mr. Kolkata stare blankly at the food in the cafeteria during lunch, wondering what to do.

And so it continued as such. Complaint after complaint, not only from the expatriates but also my fellow compatriots as well. Some of them, such as the food problem, sounded justifiable enough for me. Others, however, appeared to be rather more petty matters.

A Zambian student voices out some justifiable complaints. Photo courtesy of MIU's official Facebook.

I was just starting to metaphorically shake my head at how pampered these people were, but then I was struck by a slight tang of hypocrisy - I'm not exactly from a background of survival either.

I think it's fair to say that, generally, the students in this country are, to varying degrees, spoiled. And when I say "this country", I'm not just referring to the locals. There's a Bangladesh national here who comes from a family that's so filthy rich that he can't even make himself a cup of tea; butlers have been doing the job for him since he was a kid.

The locals aren't that much better off either. The national education system is structured in such a way that students are regularly spoon-fed, and expect assistance from their teachers for every single exam.

As for MIU, we have students that complain about not having hot water to shower in. Complain that transport to and from the university is difficult. The list goes on. Well, newsflash people, that's how life is. Suck it up, grow up.

I'm not saying that I'm the most independent guy here; no, far from it. I can't even cook a good meal to save my life. However, one thing I do, and have always done, is learn to adapt. Take the hardships as life lessons. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and all that.

In any case, MIU is still a new institution, and there's plenty of room for it to improve and grow. I can say that I know a thing or two about life in a place as new as this. And I turned out just fine.