GEORGE TOWN, June 7 (Bernama) -- Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) today launched its new USM 5550 bus service, an idea mooted by the university's students during the "Meet Anwar Programme” with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on June 11, 2023.
USM Board of Governors chairman Datuk Seri Dr Awang Adek Hussin said the initiative was a mandate from the Prime Minister to acquire a new bus while ensuring the best service for the USM community.
"During the programme, our student representative (Wan Hafiz Irshad Wan Mohd Zuhdi), a medical student in Kota Bharu, asked the Prime Minister to set aside an allocation for USM to get new buses.
"So, the Prime Minister welcomed the proposal and asked USM to procure three buses for use in all campuses,” he said after officiating the new bus at USM here today.
Awang Adek said they are glad to be able to launch the first bus within a year while the other two buses would be acquired at the end of this year, adding that they would be used for off-campus student activities or long-distance travel, replacing buses that are over 15 years old.
He said the three buses, costing RM2 million, would be used at the main USM campus here, the Health Campus in Kota Bharu, Kelantan; and the Engineering Campus in Nibong Tebal.
Meanwhile, the 23-year-old Wan Hafiz Irshad, who was the Speaker of the USM Student Parliament when he represented the students in bringing up the issue with Anwar, expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for his concern for the students’ needs by immediately approving the request.
"We had approached the Student Representative Council (MPP) and the university to acquire the buses, but there were financial constraints. That’s why I brought it up with the Prime Minister so that this issue could be resolved promptly.
"I am very grateful for the continuity of the current MPP, the highly-committed chairman of the Board of Governors and, Alhamdulillah, in less than a year, we have received a new bus,” he said.
-- BERNAMA
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