Photo by Hairul Nizam Zahari
SINTOK: The Staff Monthly Assembly and ‘Sukan Rakyat’ for the month of December 2022, which was also the last assembly of the year, drew nearly 2000 Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) staff to the UUM Stadium yesterday.
All staff present were clad in sports attire with sashes of ‘kain pelikat’ or ‘kain batik’ as the theme. In fact, every member of staff received complimentary t-shirts, which they were required to wear throughout the event.
The event was launched by Prof. Dr. Haim Hilman Abdullah, Vice-Chancellor of UUM, yesterday morning.
‘Tarik upih pinang’, ‘rantaian kasih’, coconut bowling, and many other traditional games were played. However, the primary game attraction was the tug of war between PTJs.
In addition, staff had the opportunity to participate in a lucky draw for the chance to win a variety of prizes, such as electrical appliances, bicycles, and ten number plates for the UUM.
Haim Hilman said that by incorporating ‘sukan rakyat’ activities into the staff monthly assembly will help to further instil a sense of camaraderie among the staff. He realised as a result of his observations that the prize-giving activities for this event could please all campus members and would be repeated on a regular basis.
The event was overseen by the UUM Sultanah Bahiyah Library (PSB UUM). Prof. Dr. Shahimi Mohtar, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic and International); Prof. Dr. Ahmad Martadha Mohamed, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Student Affairs and Alumni); Prof. Dr Russayani Ismail, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Innovation), heads of department, staff, and student volunteers were also present.
“Praise be to Allah, the main goal of this monthly staff meeting, which was to bring university members closer together, has been met. In other words, by fostering a family-like atmosphere at the university, I am able to encourage everyone to work hard in order to establish our institution as the best in Malaysia and the world,” he said in the interview.
During his speech, he encouraged the faculty to be passionate, to get up, and to continue striving for the institution’s performance to be the top management university. He also expressed hope that UUM will be one of the world’s 300 best universities by 2024, and one of the world’s 100 best when it turns 50. Aside from that, he hoped that 2023 would be a prosperous and enjoyable year for this university.
