KUCHING: Angkatan Zaman Mansang (Azam) on Thursday paid tribute to its founder Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud who died a day earlier.
Its chairman Datuk William Patrick Nyigor who led a delegation to pay their final respects to Taib whose remains lay in state at the state legislative assembly building said it was Taib who conceived the idea of forming Azam 41 years ago.
“Inspired by Taib’s vision, a group of Sarawakians from the civil service, media, and grassroots leadership formed Azam in 1983,” he said.
William expressed appreciation for his contributions and trust in Azam as a communication development agent, especially in rural areas.
He said Azam initially aimed to explore the extent to which communication science could be used in development initiatives in Sarawak and Malaysia, evolving over time to align with changing policies and societal needs.
“Taib emphasised the establishment of the organisation, highlighting its role in fostering effective communication strategies to garner support for government development initiatives.
“The original idea of establishing this was based on the need for effective communication strategies to engage the community in government development plans.”
Azam Sarawak has since organised various programmes since its establishment, including development communication seminars, Native Customary Rights Lands (NCR) seminars, grassroots leadership seminars, entrepreneurship seminars, digital literacy seminars, agricultural commercialisation, environmental sustainability and youth development.
Presently its programmes include digital empowerment in line with the current state development agenda.
The delegation also comprised Datuk Norhyati Ismail, Deputy Chairman of Azam, Prof Dr. Margaret Chan, Board Members, staff including Lelia Sim Ah Hua, chief executive officer (CEO), Dayang Intanwathy Abang Salleh (Head of Finance & Administration),Yaana Singkie (Community Development Officer), representatives from Sarawak Development Institute (SDI) Rosalind Wong and Kamaruddin Sajeli , and Sharifah Nadhirah Wan Teredi from Faradale Holding.
