By Alya Nadiah
GOMBAK, 20 September 2018: To encourage the participation of youth in debates on current issues, International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) finally brought its home-grown debater, Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, to the stage in a public debate series launched by IIUM in collaboration with Ministry of Youth and Sports.
The inaugural debate on the motion “Repealing The Anti-Fake News Act is A Mistake” was held at the IIUM Cultural Centre (ICC) on Tuesday (18 September). The theme for this debate series is “Re:Action – Youth Engaged” and the event was organised by IIUM World Debate and Oratory Centre (IWON) and the Rakan Muda Development Division, Ministry of Youth and Sports.
This debate series featured the Minister of Youth and Sports, Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, an IIUM alumnus, and Ahmad Syariffuddin Ahmad Fakhri, a final year IIUM student and the current champion and best speaker of Asian British Parliamentary Championship.
“We want to start the debate culture where Malaysians can speak fluent English in particular. We start the debate culture in IIUM, hoping that other universities will join,” Syed Saddiq emphasised on the objective of the event.
He said, “We don’t want the youth to only look from the side and not playing a role in planning for the future.”
Another objective of this debate is to generate interest among youth to participate in discussion regarding public policy issues aimed at creating an open and intellectual environment in the university.
“By engaging in this debate, it’s not only about talking, but it’s about engaging, dialogues, creating awareness of the issues,” Syed Saddiq added.
The event was launched by the Rector of IIUM, Prof. Tan Sri Dato’ Dzulkifli Abdul Razak after his welcoming speech. It was enlivened by the presence of Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, Steven Sim Chee Keong, and Minister of Education, Dr. Maszlee Malik.
More than 2,000 people, among them youth and IIUM students, attended the event, which was followed by question and answer session that provided a platform for the youth to express their ideas. ***
Photo credited to YB Syed Saddiq Twitter Account