BY SARAH HAFIZAH CHANDRA
KOTA SAMARAHAN: After 26 years of being known as the Centre for Academic Information Services (Cais), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak’s (Unimas) library has been rebranded officially as ‘Perpustakaan Tun Abdul Rahman Ya’kub’ (PeTARY).
The Unimas Board of Directors proposed the idea of renaming Cais as PeTARY back in 2018 and the proposal was approved by the state government recently.
Unimas Vice Chancellor, Professor Datuk Dr Mohamad Kadim Suaidi said the decision to name the library after the late Tun Abdul Rahman Ya’kub took into account the significant contributions he made in upholding education for Sarawak and Malaysia.
He said this during the official ceremony of the renaming of PeTARY, officiated by Toh Puan Hayati Ahmat, the late Abdul Rahman Ya’kub’s wife accompanied by chairman of Unimas Board of Directors, Tan Sri Datuk Seri Panglima Sulong Matjeraie.
“We are lucky that we are able to dedicate our library’s name to the late Abdul Rahman who was one of the country’s education and political icons. He was the first bumiputera of Sarawak who graduated as a lawyer from Lincoln’s Inn, London in 1958.
“Besides that, he was one of the founding figures for Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) in 1970 and the pioneer in the establishment of Yayasan Sarawak,” he explained.
Kadim also said that reading is very important as it opens up opportunities to explore the world, especially in this era of globalisation.
“There are treasures of knowledge which lies within the walls of libraries. I always remind myself and share with the community that a well-read society is a well-developed society.
“Therefore, we must agree with the fact that a nation can only be strong and mighty when its people are diligent in reading,” he explained.
He also expressed Unimas’ gratitude to the late Abdul Rahman Ya’kub’s family for their support in helping to materialise the exhibition at the gallery which will provide visitors insights into Abdul Rahman’s significant contributions to the country.
A special exhibition entitled “Permata Hati Sarawak” in the Gallery Tun Abdul Rahman Ya’kub was also officiated by Toh Puan Hayati Ahmat.
The gallery is located at the ground floor of PeTARY which exhibits a collection of photos, personal items, books and other related materials which showcase the late Abdul Rahman’s journey and achievements.
