Dr Sim urges foreign university graduates to return to serve the state

KUCHING: Young Sarawakians who decide to pursue tertiary education outside their home state are advised to return to serve Sarawak upon completing their studies.

Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian, who gave this advice yesterday, said they must grab every opportunity to serve their home state with the knowledge and talents acquired outside Sarawak.

He also encouraged school leavers of Chinese independent schools to seek employment in the public sector.

He made these remarks at the joint graduation ceremony of Kuching Chung Hua Middle School (CHMS) No.1, 3 and 4 here.

Citing himself as an example, Dr Sim said he had served in many places outside the state as a cardiologist but he decided to come back to Sarawak to serve his home land after years of travelling around the world.

A total of 363 students completed their Senior Three studies this year, the highest number of graduates since 2006.

This year’s pass rate of 81.27 per cent is 5.18 per cent higher than that of last year.

Meanwhile, Committee of Management of Kuching CHMS No.1, 3 and 4 chairman Datuk Richard Wee called upon graduates to practise life-long learning.

He said possessing knowledge alone is not sufficient to face challenges in this modern era as he asserted that young individuals ought to acquire wisdom and adopt an altruistic outlook.

Wee regretted that a federal minister had recently said that English would threaten Bahasa Malaysia and culture in the country.

He said such an opinion reflected shortsightedness and was misleading to and not in line with globalisation.

“English is still a major international language, and learning the English language helps one better connect with the world. Bahasa Malaysia, as the national language, should be given equal emphasis.

“While we promote the use of Bahasa Malaysia, we should not neglect the learning of other languages or Malaysia will risk being marginalised,” he added.