KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 21 — The involvement of companies in literary programmes at educational institutions can help develop young talent in the field, Senior Education Minister Datuk Dr Radzi Jidin said.
“Poetry can help students love language,” he said when officiating the closing of the 2022 National Primary and Secondary School Merdeka Poetry Writing and Declamation Competition at the Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP) here today.
Radzi also expressed his appreciation to the UMW Group for sponsoring the competition, which was held for the first time in collaboration with the Education Ministry (MOE) and DBP.
Radzi added that his ministry will consider expanding the competition to the district and state levels so that more students have the opportunity to participate.
Meanwhile, UMW Group Chairman Tan Sri Hamad Kama Piah Che Othman said UMW hoped its involvement in the programme would be able to nurture a sense of love for the country, preserve the art of poetry and produce cultured people with inner strength and identity.
For the poetry writing competition, a poem written by Aisyah Noor Balqis Muhammad Asri from Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Seri Tasik, Cheras won the Form Three to Form Five category while a poem written by Nur Zara Sofia Zakaria from Sekolah Kebangsaan Seri Tasik won the Year Four to Form Two category.
In the poetry recitation competition, Muhammad Rejab Mamor from Maahad Tahfiz Al-Quran and Akademik Bakip, Ipoh, Perak emerged as winners of the Form Three to Form Five category while Putri Kaleisha Qistina Kamaruddin from Sekolah Kebangsaan Lok Yuk Inanam, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah won the Year Four to Form Two category.
