Netizens Tear Into “NASA Boy” Azhar Ali’s Credentials After Finding Out He’s A Perdana Fellow
Three years ago, Muhammad Azhar Ali went viral for claiming to have secured a scholarship from NASA which was then debunked.
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UPDATE
The Perdana Fellows Alumni Association (PFAA) has released a statement to address the allegations.
READ MORE: Perdana Fellows Alumni Association Calls For Investigation Into Azhar Ali’s Credentials
The Youth and Sports Ministry said a Fellow would be dropped from the Perdana Fellowship Programme after an investigation into the allegations.
READ MORE: KBS Confirms One Perdana Fellow Dropped Over Fake Cert, Is It Azhar Ali?
A Bank Negara strategic communications department employee confirmed with SAYS on 15 September that the award of Best Delegate at the Bank Negara Fiscal Policy Summit 2021 does not exist.
On 30 April 2020, then-20-year-old Muhammad Azhar Ali announced on Twitter that NASA offered him a scholarship and named him as one of their Citizen Scientists for scoring in the top 1% of their Artemis Student Challenge Programme.
It was then revealed that it was likely a hoax as the story didn’t match up. People could not find his name on NASA’s website listing its Citizen Scientists.
People also discovered that the programme was only available to US citizens and Permanent Residents since participants had to be on-site in Houston, Texas, throughout the competition.
On 3 May 2020, Azhar claimed he might have been the victim of an online scam. If you think that is the last Netizens will hear of him, think again.
READ MORE: [UPDATED] 20YO M’sian NASA Scholarship Recipient Said He Could Be A Scam Victim
Recently, International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz shared on 23 August 2023 that Azhar joined the Perdana Fellowship under his ministry.
In the infographic shared, Azhar’s credentials and achievements were listed and scrutinised by netizens.
Let the debunking begin
Azhar allegedly obtained a BEE in Electronics and Communications Engineering from Universiti Malaya (UM).
Netizens pointed out that UM does offer a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering (BEE) but it does not offer a major in Electronics and Communications Engineering, which Azhar supposedly took. Not to mention, “communications” was misspelt in the post.
However, it was pointed out that the degree on the infographic may have been wrongly worded as Azhar was listed as having a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering in the official press release by the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
Azhar was also said to be a runner-up in Microsoft’s Imagine Cup 2021. Checks showed that the winner that year was a group from Kenya. The other teams that made it to the final round were from Thailand, New Zealand, and the United States.
On Microsoft’s official website, only four other teams representing Asia that qualified in the cup’s top 12 which were China, India, Nepal, and New Zealand.
Malaysia was not on the list so it throws into question which country Azhar represented, if he even did at all.
What about Azhar emerging as champion at the WorldQuant Brain 2022 Global Alphathon? Checks revealed that the four winning teams that year were university teams from Vietnam, South Korea, and China.
However, his claim of being the Best Delegate at the Bank Negara Fiscal Policy Summit in 2021 couldn’t be debunked for now. Initial searches online regarding this award yielded no results.
Netizens found Azhar’s list of achievements slightly amusing and considered him Malaysia’s very own Frank Abagnale, a renowned conman. Abagnale’s story was made into a popular 2002 movie called Catch Me If You Can, starring Leonardo Dicaprio and Tom Hanks.
They also wondered why Perdana Fellows did not carry out thorough background checks on their members.
He thinks he is Frank Abagnale. pic.twitter.com/pRpSbSaiav
— Roman Akramovich (@SyedAkramin) September 12, 2023
catch me if you can malay version
— pi (@JaznynaA) September 12, 2023
@tzafrul_aziz @MITIMalaysia is this true? Wasn't there a background check for felllows?
— mobius6419 (@mobius6419) September 12, 2023
If that Azhar dude did indeed scam his way into the perdana fellowship, then mad respect of his focus on skills at scamming. The man never gave up and upped his ante.
— eKharus™ (@eKharus) September 12, 2023
Perdana Fellow
A Perdana Fellowship is a prestigious programme established by the Ministry of Youth and Sports in 2013 to provide Malaysian youths with a first-hand experience in matters of national governance.
Its aim is to develop the next generation of Malaysian leaders across various sectors. As such, Perdana Fellows are placed under the purview of Ministers of various ministries to assist in the highest form of governance.
Upon completing the fellowship, Fellows become a member of the Perdana Fellows Alumni Association (PFAA).
Other notable Malaysians
While the Ministry of Youth and Sports and MITI have yet to react to this, it remains to be seen if Azhar’s credentials are in fact dubious.
This however doesn’t mean Malaysia is devoid of talented people.
Many Malaysians have achieved tremendous success in their own ways and in different industries through hard work and smarts.
READ MORE: Chinese Malaysian From Johor Is NASA’s Deputy Chief Technologist
READ MORE: NASA Just Recognised This Malaysian For His Handy Space Toilet Design
READ MORE: Where Is Amber Leong, The First Malaysian Entrepreneur Featured On Shark Tank?
READ MORE: Where Is Fakhirah Khairuddin Now, The Malaysian Engineer Who Landed A Job At Tesla US?
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