ADDRESS BY
THE HONOURABLE TAN SRI DATO DR. LIN SEE YAN PRO-CHANCELLOR OF UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE 62nd CONVOCATION CEREMONY UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA
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SALUTATION
The Honourable Tan Sri Dr. Salleh Bin Mohd Nor, Pro- Chancellor Of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Prof. Datuk Ir. Dr. Wahid Bin Omar, Vice-chancellor Of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. Senate members and the management team of the university. Graduates, parents and guests of honour. www.utm.my
CONGRATULATIONS TO UTM GRADUANDS
Salam Hormat dan Salam Sejahtera. Terlebih dahulu, saya ingin mengucapkan taniah, kepada semua graduan. Anda telah berusaha dengan gigihnya, dan telah berjaya dengan cemerlang dan gemilang. Saya percaya ibubapa anda amat berbangga dan bersyukur dengan kejayaan anda. www.utm.my
CONGRATULATIONS TO UTM GRADUANDS
Sukacita saya mengalu-alukan anda, golongan terpelajar dan intelektual ke majlis konvokesyen pada hari ini. (atau dalam Bahasa Inggeris: I welcome all of you to the community of educated men and women). www.utm.my
CONGRATULATORY REMARKS
Well Done and deepest congratulations to the recipients of the Professor Emeritus award : Ir. Dr. Mohd Azraai bin Kassim, Dato' Dr. Abdul Majid bin Kadir and Dr. Noor Sharipah binti Sultan Sidi. www.utm.my
UTM REMAINS TO EDUCATE FUTURE LEADERS
Dear graduands, The prime mission of UTM remains to educate future leaders – that’s at the very heart of what it does. Looking back, once I had the audacity to apply to Harvard for post-graduate studies, simply because one of my mentors told me, I can do anything I want to do. www.utm.my
SETTING HIGH EXPECTATIONS
I do hope all of you – as you graduate – are encouraged to do just that. It’s all about expectations – setting high expectations and letting it be known to all, what’s available out there. And having them make that leap, so they all have that same audacity to do whatever they want to do. www.utm.my
SETTING HIGH EXPECTATIONS
Sadly, some of you may just feel you are not up to it. So, I urge you not to sell yourself short. The landscape over which you all can advance is almost limitless: only limited by creativity, energy & resources. And, every time you come together – like today – I suggest you should interact more with each other, network more, & think of more ways to make one another better. www.utm.my
AIM HIGH AND DREAM BIG
Also, I urge you all to aim high, dream big, continue to stay in touch with your mentors, and above all, continue to be inspired by your curiosity beyond the sciences, math & engineering which so many of you truly love. Remember, education gives you choices: allow you to decide how and where you want to work. And, what you want to do with your talents, your passion. www.utm.my
UTM SERVES AS A SOURCE OF STRENGTH Dear graduands, UTM serves as a source of strength through tough & rough economic, political & social times. Today, as you leave this great institution, I want to plant in you, an idea, at a time when politics is so tribal & petty, even corrupt – especially in relation to inequality tensions, funds mismanagement, or even Brexit, although so very far away; we need this idea more than ever. www.utm.my
DECLINING OF TRUST
It is trust. Yes, trust. Look around the workplace & the community in which you live, trust is beginning to break-down. In recent years, I note there has been endless hand-wringing over the idea that trust is declining – in both the east and west. www.utm.my
THE IMPORTANCE OF TRUST
Today, we can’t be sure whom we can, and should, trust anymore. Philosophers tell us the aim should be to trust more. I don’t think this would do it. Not in today’s world. What we should aim for is to trust our instincts more, and trust-in only the trustworthy. But not in the untrustworthy, which we see all over the place, especially among politicians, even some academics. www.utm.my
FOCUS MORE ON BEING TRUSTWORTHY
Indeed, we need think much less about trust per se, let alone about attitudes of trust; for example, detected or mis-detected by opinion polls. We must instead, focus much more on being trustworthy, and how you can pass on to people – adequate, useful & simple evidence that one is trustworthy. www.utm.my
BUILD TRUST
No doubt, this requires more & better transparency. Another way to build trust is for institutions & individuals to make themselves vulnerable. Companies like Amazon, that offer consumers the right to return goods, do this: they build trust by making themselves open to criticism (and even financial loss) when goods are returned. www.utm.my
BUILD TRUST
Online ratings on sites, such as Grab, Uber and Airbnb, do the same: they build so-called distributed trust by letting the seller and buyer rate each other. Perhaps, one of you should take up the challenge to introduce this idea into politics and government too, to get them to become more trustworthy – certainly, more worthy of our trust. The outcomes should be most interesting. www.utm.my
BUILD TRUST
Ladies & gentlemen, Here, I am reminded of the wisdom of the British author William Thackeray: “To be trustworthy is to be honest, to be gentle, to be generous; to be brave, to be wise; and, possessing all those qualities, to exercise them in the most graceful outward manner.” There you are, ladies & gentlemen. That’s it – TRUST. www.utm.my
THE CONCEPTS OF ETHICS & DUTY
Finally, there are also the concepts of Ethics & Duty. I am afraid this has gone out of fashion in recent years. Instead, there is more of a focus on citizen rights and regulations. I am one of those who believe that it is impossible to cure society’s ills, by simply imposing more rules. www.utm.my
THE CONCEPTS OF ETHICS & DUTY
I worry we have this compliance mentality gone mad. It just doesn’t work in life. Instead, society needs to rediscover the forgotten concept of ethics, of what’s good & what’s bad – and to celebrate it! In the end, surely, the world could do well with a little more philosophy and a little more humanity. www.utm.my
EMBRACE CHANGE
Dear graduands,
At this time of much technological disruption amid much volatility and much uncertainty, I expect you to be adaptable and to embrace change. Not to be its victim. www.utm.my
REMEMBER WHAT DEFINES YOU
As you leave this great institution, I urge you to pause & to remember what defines you. And, how you have come through over the years to become: hopefully, Disciplined & Wiser. Certainly, more prepared to lead fulfilling lives. And, in the process, leave the country, and this world, a better place than you found it. www.utm.my
CLOSING
Saya ingin mengucapkan, selamat maju jaya, di dalam perjalanan hidup anda, dan InshaaAllah, semoga, ia akan menjadi pengalaman yang menggembirakan. Atau dalam Bahasa Inggeris: As you look forward, my young friends, may your journey through life prove for you a joyous and amazing experience. I wish you Godspeed. Sekian, terima kasih.
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