Time:              8.30 pm

Venue:            Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC), Putrajaya.

26^th July 2017 marked another achievement for UTP, particularly for international students, when Chemical Engineering​ student, Abdul Rahman Khaled Saeed (Year 1 Semester 2) from Yemen, competed in Pidato Antarabangsa Bahasa Melayu (PABM) 2017 for the first time and won second place in the prestigious competition which has widespread coverage throughout Malaysia.

This is the first time UTP sent international students to compete in PABM ever since the category "Pelajar Antarabangsa Malaysia" (PAM) – specifically for international students studying in Malaysia - was first introduced by Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) in 2015. PABM which was mooted by the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak is an annual event organised by MOHE with the cooperation of Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka (DBP), University of Malaysia Debating Council (MADUM) and University of Malaysia Cultural Council (MAKUM).

Three (3) UTP students competed during the first round in February 2017, and two (2) of them qualified for the 2^nd round on 21^st July 2017 at RHR Hotel UNITEN, Bangi. One of them, Abdul Rahman Khaled Saeed managed to proceed to semi-final on 25^th July 2017 where he defeated the other two (2) contestants from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) to join the two (2) finalists from International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) in the final round of PABM 2017.

With his pidato entitled "Mahasiswa Tonggak Kejayaan 1Malaysia", Abdul Rahman bagged 2^nd place in the competition and brought home RM12,000 cash prize and the PABM 2017 trophy. He made history as the first contestant in PAM Category to reach the finals on his first attempt, making him one of the most highly skilled competitors PABM has ever seen. First and third place went to IIUM students who could be considered PABM "seasoned speakers", Abdul Matin and Hassan Radwan, having been in the competition 3 times and 2 times respectively.

On this remarkable achievement of UTP international students in PABM 2017, we would like to congratulate Abdul Rahman for his tremendous effort and hard work (he will not be able to compete next year since he was one of PABM 2017 finalists).

We would also like to express heartfelt gratitude to our Vice Chancellor, Datuk Ir (Dr) Abdul Rahim Haji Hashim, our Deputy Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs & Alumni, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nor Hisham Hamid, Tuan Haji Talhah Hasan and Mr. Mohd Zamani Mohd Zain for their incredible support to UTP contestants and officials. Our gratitude also goes to Mr. Kamarul Afendy Hamimi (UTP PABM Trainer) and other UTP staff who have directly and indirectly contributed towards this achievement.

Thank you and with the great experience that we had this year, we'll try our utmost best to conquer the best position (1^st place) in PABM 2018.