Speaker of Dewan Rakyat shares leadership vision with UMPSA community

GAMBANG, 10 June 2025 – The Leadership Talk Programme organised by the Students’ Representative Council (MPP) of Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah (UMPSA) featured the Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat, YB Tan Sri Dato’ Dr Johari Abdul, as the invited figure at Dewan Astaka, UMPSA Gambang Campus.

This programme, part of the Distinguished Figures Talk Series initiative, provided students with direct exposure to a national figure in the fields of leadership and governance.

In his speech, YB Tan Sri Dato’ Dr Johari shared his extensive experience in the fields of law and parliament, and emphasised the values of integrity, principled leadership, and transparency as foundational elements in building the nation’s future.

The programme continued with an almost one-hour dialogue session that witnessed dynamic interaction between the campus community and YB Tan Sri Dato’ Dr Johari, where various current issues and critical views related to national leadership were raised.

Earlier, UMPSA Vice-Chancellor, Professor Dr Yatimah Alias, in her welcoming remarks, expressed appreciation to YB Tan Sri Dato’ Dr Johari for graciously attending and described the programme as a great honour for UMPSA.

“Today’s theme, ‘Nurturing Future Leadership’, is highly relevant to UMPSA’s mission as a premier technical university committed to producing leaders with integrity, competitiveness, and awareness of national development,” she said.

Prof Dr Yatimah Alias also emphasised that leadership is not merely about positions but is closely related to the formation of values, vision, and the courage to bring about positive change.

“UMPSA continuously supports the holistic development of students through various platforms such as student association activities, leadership training, campus democracy via MPP Elections, and also the UMPSA Student Parliament, which serves as a training ground for students to understand the parliamentary democratic system and hone their debating skills.

“This programme not only provides students with an opportunity to understand the realities of the leadership world but also helps shape identity, leadership ability, and soft skills among UMPSA students,” she added.

Citing statistics from the Ministry of Higher Education (2023), Professor Dr Yatimah Alias also noted that 60 per cent of political and corporate leaders in Malaysia are alumni of public universities.

“This proves the important role of institutions like UMPSA in producing national leaders.

“Each of you is an agent of change who will determine the direction of the country in the coming decade.

“Do not merely chase grades, but build character and leadership values within yourselves,” she added.

This programme is part of UMPSA’s commitment to realising the Knowledge Transfer Agenda under the seven Key Focus Areas of the Ministry of Higher Education (KPT) for 2025 and will continue to regularly feature various figures from the fields of leadership, entrepreneurship, academia, and religion to holistically empower UMPSA’s human capital.

By: Naqiah Puaad, Centre for Corporate Communications
Translation by: Dr. Rozaimi Abu Samah, UMPSA Press