[ SPEECH ] THE 1st BEREAU MEETING OF THE ICAPP YOUTH WINGS

SPEECH BY Y.B. DATO’ SERI DR. SHAHIDAN KASSIM, MINISTER IN PRIME MINISTER DEPARTMENT IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE 1^st BEREAU MEETING OF THE ICAPP YOUTH WINGS AT BUNGA RAYA ROOM, SERI PACIFIC HOTEL, KUALA LUMPUR ON THURSDAY, 20TH FEBRUARY 2014 AT 10.00 AM.

“Strengthening and Empowering Youth Movement”

Bismillahirrahmannirrahim,

Assalamualaikum Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh,

Very good evening and peace be upon you.

[Salutations to be clarified]

Introduction

1.  It gives me a great pleasure to welcome all of you in this first Bereau Meeting of the ICAPP Youth Wings in Kuala Lumpur.  

2.  The significance of ICAPP are well noticed by several international networks including ASEAN or Association of South East Asian Nations, APEC or Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, and the affiliate governments in the region.

Walk the talk: The young-hearted leadership

Ladies and gentleman,

3.  There was time that I was young by age and striving hard to stand to be seen and to speak to be heard.  In those days, youth are merely seen as recipients and not participants in youth development programs.  Youth development became a task of professionals and not the youth community as a whole.  Youth are being supervise rather than being advise.

4.  With the known limitation within the society, very few can get through to excel while most of my comrades chose to tone down and dilute themselves in those traditional believes of seniority held the absolute priority.

5.    It was during that period that young age’s men and women realize the needs of real shift in thinking and approaches to let youth to excel earlier than before.  We started focusing on outcomes rather than just discussing on issues.  We started to be proactive rather than reactive.  We started to participate with valuable contributions in planning and execution rather than just being the recipients to services and programs.

6.    Looking back at all those days, it reminds me the importance of being young by heart.  While we welcome assistance and helps with open arms, we are well-equipped and always prepared to struggle over challenges and obstacles in achieving the expected outcomes. 

7.    Year after year, we add one to our numerical age; and we said we are all getting older.  But it is not that expression of age that defines us to lead the youth community with dignity and perseverance.  It is the young hearted leadership that pours confidence and self-esteem among the youth.  It is that young hearted leadership that able to walk the talk in the same wavelength among the youth.    

Economic Chasm: Narrowing the world economic inequality

Ladies and gentleman,

8. In the recent report in Lost Angeles Times last January, there was a study that concluded 85 richest people on earth have the same amount of wealth as the bottom half of the population. The study tabled in the annual World Economic Forum reported the richest 1% had 110 trillion dollars in wealth, which is 65 times the total wealth of the bottom half of the world population. Those bottom half of the population owned only about 1.7 trillion dollars, or about 0.7% of the world's wealth. That's the same amount as owned by the 85 richest people in this world. [1]

9. As a youth wing in ICAPP, we need to participate in the global call to reverse this trend. The widened inequality will create vicious circle where wealth and power are increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few.

10. In order to strengthen and empower youth movements, the political and economic chasm needs to be tackled by creating opportunities; not through rivalry environment to triumph one another over the similar pie, but by enlarging and expanding the pie.

11. It is crucial that governments provide sufficient support and guidance, academically and financially, for fresh graduates and vocational experts to inspire and explore new economic opportunities. Proper planning combined with easing up the delivery mechanism will synergize those fresh and educated bloods to participate with positive contributions in overcoming the world economic inequality. The youth, as the heir of this civilized world, should drive and champion the solution of this economic chasm.

12. The Honorary Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato’ Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak, has expressed the Malaysian government commitment in his speech during Malaysia Youth Day Celebration, that the youth community will be assisted not only to survive but to thrive in this new economy environment.[2]

Unemployment Challenge: Parallelism vs. Anti-Establishment

Ladies and gentleman,

13. (Humor) There is an incident where a man passes-by an accident scene with curiosity. As too many people surrounding the accident victim, he can hardly see the condition of the victim. This man then shouted spontaneously, “Give way everybody! I am the father of the victim!”. As everyone taken a step back to give way to this man to come forward, the man finally reach the victim, which is apparently…… a dog. 

14. Very often our young people are striving hard to get to the front, to be seen and to be heard, without precisely knowing what we want to achieve as the final goal above all the actions.

15. In certain countries, the youth communities have been dragged into anti-establishment movements that are more often than not jeopardizing the progress of the countries. They are fighting on the streets without knowing the outcome of such acts. Governments have been put into crisis; economic circles run in precarious uncertainties and the public lives in fear of inflation and unemployment hiccups. 

16. Unemployment is a tragedy. Individuals find themselves unable to get on in life, their family has to support them financially and motivationally, and the country missing out on a huge amount of untapped talent.

17. We know that our young people are talented with vast majority of them are hardworking and ambitious. So long that these young people have ambition that suited well to their knowledge, expertise and interest, they have great potential. 

18. In seeking employment, our youth must understand that not only the government and private sectors can provide a long-term employment, but the biggest opportunity for these unemployed youth is to kick-off their own businesses; and be the employers instead of employees. 

19. There is huge opportunity to tab in internet technologies and the fast growing cyber communities; where we have 1.83 billion internet users whom searching for product and services at the rate of 2.9 million searches per minute. [3] Business transaction can take place anytime at any corner of the world. And more importantly, young people are the highest digital literacy groups to gain advantage for this business segments.

20. Therefore, it is crucial that our youth out there realize the true challenges ahead of their current affairs. They are always two options: to move against the government or to co-operate in-parallel with the government in planning and executing related policies and agenda.   

Conclusion: Strengthening and Empowering Youth Movement

Ladies and gentleman,

21. In order to strengthen and empower the youth movements, our young people must be a sharpener in their community; rather than being a pencil which is being shaped by the sharpener.

22. Youth must participate in policy making; and not just be the observer that uttering critics.

23. Youth must be given a chance to get their foot on the leadership ladder.

24. Youth must be given a chance to help businesses to grow.

25. Youth must be given a chance to prove what they can do.

Ladies and gentleman,

26. With that, I thank you.

27. Wassalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

Reference:

[1] http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-oxfam-world-economic-forum-income-inequality-20140120,0,7080817.story#ixzz2rBFu95Ye

[2] http://www.arkib.gov.my/en/c/document_library/get_file?uuid=a157a3f7-e6b7-4613-8413-2d62c781cb4a&groupId=146926

[3] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ij5yC-moPCM