Philanthropist Koon Yew Yin has pledged RM50 million to the Penang government for construction of hostel accommodation for university students.

"I wish to donate RM50 million for building student hostels to help students studying in Penang, especially students from poor families, in their access to tertiary education," he said in a statement today.

Koon said he met with the Penang state executive council on Sept 15, and the council has accepted his donation to build these hostels.

The state government has allocated a 60,000 square-foot land opposite University Sains Malaysia (USM), which has a student population of 18,000, he said.

He pointed out that USM only provides accommodation for first-year students.

In 2009, Koon offered to donate RM30 million to Utar to build hostels at its Kampar campus in Perak.

When there was no response from Utar, Koon then withdrew his offer on Sept 12, 2010, according to a report in Free Malaysia Today website.

The portal quoted Utar as saying they turned down Koon's offer due to the "many conditions (imposed) such as setting up a foundation where he (Koon) will be chairperson and be in full control over the spending of his money".

A day after that Utar issued another statement saying it had not turned down the offer but was still discussing it, said the report.

Koon, who is the founder of IJM Corporation Bhd, Gamuda Bhd, and Mudajaya Group Bhd, then denied the claim that he wanted full control over his donation.

"This is factually incorrect and misleading. Even if I had wanted control, common sense would dictate that I should have some control. But I did not say that," he was quoted by the portal.

Recipients to help others

Revealing that all his wealth is from investment in shares, he said he has bequethed all his remaining assets to be donated to charity, preferably to help poor students upon his death.

He also said he has disbursed up to 300 scholarships in the past eight years.

None of the scholarship recipients need to return the money, he said, but he hopes they will pay the goodwill forward by helping other poor students when they are financially able.

He said donating one’s wealth will bring about happiness.

"We all must bear in mind that we cannot take our money along when we die. After we have given a good education to our children and discharge all out responsibilities, we must do charity to help the poor.

"We all must remember that our ultimate aim in life is happiness. When you see poor people happy, you will also feel happy," he said.

Koon has appointed three representatives to the management committee which will oversee the student hostel develpment - Centre for Policy Initiatives director Lim Teck Ghee ( photo ), architect Lee Thean Hock, and his wife.

The terms and conditions with which the Penang government has accepted his donations are as follows:

1. The entire sum of RM50 million and subsequent profit must be used to build hostels and other such buildings for the benefit of any student, whether local or foreign, studying in Penang.

2. All construction contracts exceeding RM10,000 must be open to competitive tenders.

3. A seven-member task force will be established to oversee the donation programme and the implementation of the hostels, with four members to be nominated by the Penang government, including the Chief Minister as chairperson, and three members to be nominated by Koon or his nominee.

4. Koon will be appointed as life-long adviser to the task force, with any changes to the position having to be sanctioned by him or the executors of his estate.

5. The Penang government will be responsible for the provision of state land for the hostels and associated facilities as well as to recruit and defray the costs of a team of professional staff to run and manage the hostels.

6. The rental rate of the hostels must be competitive, profitable but also must not burden the student residents.

7. Koon and his estate reserve the right to authorise the state goverment to use a portion of the income to establish a Koon Yew Yin Charitable Foundation to help poor students through loan scholarships to study in Penang.

8. To honour Koon's donation, he wishes to have a tablet prominently displayed in the hostel complex with the following words inscribed: "Recipients of Koon Yew Yin scholarships and residents of Koon Yew Yin's hostels have to promise that when they graduate and are financially solvent, they will help other people".

9. The entire complex of student hostels is to be named Koon Yew Yin Residential Complex. Each hostel in the complex is to be named after the fundamental rights of citizens such as 'liberty', 'justice', 'equality', 'fraternity', 'freedom', 'integrity', and such.