GET ACTIVE: (From left) Abu Seman, Dr Kadim and Dr Abdul Rahman speaking at the press conference after a courtesy call on Unimas vice-chancellor at his office.
KOTA SAMARAHAN: Sarawak National Youth Organisation (Saberkas) is determined to expand its membership to students of public and private institutions of higher learning (IPTA) for them to get involved in community and social activities.
Saberkas secretary-general Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi said Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) was chosen as the first IPTA in its recruitment initiative in order to enable the students to create a body under Saberkas to carry out activities that will help prepare students for the real society after graduation.
“Through participation in Saberkas, students will easily shape themselves up for the real society through the experience gained when involved in activities under Saberkas besides contributing knowledge they have learned,” Dr Abdul Rahman told a press conference after a courtesy call on Unimas vice-chancellor Professor Datuk Dr Mohamad Kadim Suaidi at his office yesterday.
Leading the entourage, Dr Abdul Rahman was accompanied by his deputy Abu Seman Jahwie and members of the executive council where deputy vice-chancellor Peter Songan was also present.
He added that Saberkas generally want IPTA graduates to have a variety of other skills, including adaptability which he described as an added value to an individual.
He also pointed out that university students normally face the problem of getting permission to use a certain location to run an activity or a programme.
“Therefore, Saberkas is one of the platforms for students to organise and participate in community and social activities,” he said.
“In addition, we strongly encourage undergraduates to meet up with the school students, especially those in rural areas, to help them get better results in exams,” he added.
According to Dr Abdul Rahman, Saberkas has about 130,000 members aged 16 and over currently.
“Previously, Saberkas experienced minor difficulty in registering new members, but after the constitutional amendment last three years, we believe we will be able to attract more youths to register as members of the organisation,” he said.
“Now, we have a total of 71 branches and 70 per cent of the committee members are aged 45 years and below in every branch including the units within,” he explained.
Meanwhile, Dr Mohamad Kadim highlighted that Saberkas’ effort was in line with the objectives of Unimas to build closer rapport with surrounding communities.
He hopes the initiative will be implemented successfully and efficiently.
“One of Unimas’ objectives is to ensure that our presence is felt by the local community and we will work together with Saberkas to leverage this partnership,” said Dr Mohamad Kadim.