POPULAR 25 Years Launching Ceremony

SPEECH BY CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG
POPULAR 25 Years Launching Ceremony

17 MARCH 2017

Yang Berhormat Mr Danny Law Heng Kiang
Penang State Tourism Development & Culture EXCO

Yang Berbahagia Datuk Seri Mirza Mohammad Taiyab
Director General of Tourism Malaysia;

Mr Chou Cheng Ngok
Group CEO of POPULAR Holdings Limited

Ms Lim Lee Ngoh
Executive Director of POPULAR Malaysia

Media representatives and members of the press

Distinguished guests

Ladies and gentlemen

Good day, and thank you for inviting me to share a few words with you, in tandem with the celebrations of POPULAR’s 25-year presence in Penang.

Today’s ceremony is made all the more meaningful, as the KOMTAR outlet is POPULAR’s first ever in Penang. I’ve also been informed that Penang was the first state outside Kuala Lumpur, where POPULAR established its bookstore, 25 years ago.

Malaysians are not reading enough. It’s a fact that even in our internet age, physical books and reading materials remain the most popular method of reference.

In Penang, we established the first Penang Digital Library in Malaysia in the evolution of libraries. The RM2.5 million Digital Library is a public private partnership where the state government provides both the existing heritage building and funds together with funds and expertise from the private sector. We stress that we are not abandoning old libraries but exploring new ones by using the latest technologies and invention.

Penang Digital Library aimed to redesign how we access information and curate knowledge; to channel this information to the people that need it most – when they need it most. It also aims to create an environment that will complement the more traditional methods of teaching and learning to elevate the education experience to be on par with today’s technological landscape.

POPULAR has just finished organising its annual Mega Bookfair last December, at the Straits Quay Convention Centre in Penang, 10th edition of its kind. So, on behalf of the Penang State Government and people of Penang, my congratulations to POPULAR for being established in Penang for 25 years now!

Thank you.