Earlier this week, Khairy Jamaluddin addressed the controversy surrounding Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) and a proposal to temporarily open admissions to non-Bumiputeras.

According to Khairy, known as KJ, the issue stems from a shortage of medical specialists in Malaysia, particularly cardiothoracic surgeons. He explained that while there was a proposal for UiTM to temporarily admit non-Bumiputera trainees as a short-term solution, the debate has expanded to include discussions on permanently opening UiTM to non-Bumiputeras and the need for approval from the Council of Rulers.

KJ discussed the matter in the latest episode of his Keluar Sekejap podcast on YouTube, where a specific term he used to describe the issue has sparked further discussion.

"You have to be serious people lah. Don't be the 'titik bengik' people that [Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim] mentioned earlier. Remeh temeh. You have to be serious people. If you want to be 'titik bengik', then get out of here. You don't deserve to be anywhere near serious issues," he said while discussing the matter with his podcast partner, Shahril Sufian Hamdan.

But what does 'titik bengik' mean?

Though it may sound vulgar due to the similarity of the first word to the slang in Bahasa Melayu for female breasts, the term simply means something trivial or small. 'Titik' means drop or dot, and 'bengik' means shortness of breath. Together, these words mean 'small' or 'trivial', according to Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka. KJ was suggesting that people should not be 'small-minded', especially concerning the crucial issue of the shortage of medical specialists in Malaysia.

"The issue lies in ensuring that they [specialists] can be registered," he said, adding that the matter has reached an impasse because while some propose that UiTM should accept the trainees, the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) states there is no guarantee it will eventually recognize them.

"The health minister and the higher education minister need to solve this problem. The director-general of health, who is the MMC president, caused this problem by saying that he does not recognize this specialty. Settle it, settle this issue. The ministers and the director-general should get it done," he said.

KJ mentioned that Anwar initially used the term during a recent national address. "What I noticed him say was 'titik bengik'. I heard 'titik bengik', but actually it is 'tetek bengek'," KJ shared with Shahril while using his hands to point towards his chest to describe what 'tetek' meant. "This is a term that [Anwar] likes to borrow from [Indonesia]. 'Titik bengik' is a term you commonly hear in Indonesia, meaning something trivial. So [Anwar] said don't focus on [trivial things]," KJ explained.

Shahril later asked for the literal meaning of the term. "Wallahualam, and I'm scared to think about the literal meaning of 'tetek bengek'. But yeah, let's not focus on the trivial things. We should focus on important things."