Tan Sri (Dr) Mohd Hassan Marican was proclaimed as the fourth Chancellor of Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP) at the university’s 21st convocation ceremony today.
The convocation ceremony is held from January 10 to 14 in 10 sessions.
The appointment was a homecoming for Tan Sri Hassan for it was during his tenure as President and Chief Executive Officer of PETRONAS that the idea for UTP was first mooted, conceptualised and eventually realised.
It was exactly 25 years ago on 10 January 1997, that he received the invitation letter from the Government to establish UTP. He was the university’s first Chairman of the Board of Directors and was very much involved in the establishment and development of the campus. He was also the Pro Chancellor from 2003 until 2010.
In his speech, Tan Sri Hassan reminded the graduates to not forget the less fortunate and contribute to societal upliftment in whatever form regardless of race or religion.
He also mentioned on the importance of being rational and responsible on how to deal with issues in the post-pandemic world such as climate change.
“Governments may talk of their climate plans and goals, with targets and deadlines, but the how-to is where the challenge lies. I urge the graduates to think about the how. Consider the ways in which you can be involved in the how-to, while always keeping in mind that the solution and the approach has to be carried out in a responsible way,” he said.
Tan Sri Hassan also launched UTP 25th Anniversary celebration, which fell on 10 January. To commemorate the university’s silver jubilee, UTP will organise various events and activities throughout the year for the university’s staff, students and community.
Meanwhile, UTP Vice Chancellor Professor Ts Dr Mohamed Ibrahim Abdul Mutalib emphasised on the importance of upholding the amanah entrusted to the graduates.
“We hope that when you go out to the next chapter of your life, you will uphold the amanah entrusted to you by the people around you. It is an amanah for you to always do the right thing in honouring the trust and shoulder the hope of your loved ones, UTP and the nation,” he said.
For the class of 2021, a total of 1,604 students graduated, of which 1,366 were conferred bachelor's degrees, 161 master’s degrees and 77 doctorate’s degrees.
Information Systems graduate Asyraf Irfan Muhammad Adib was awarded the Chancellor’s Gold Award, while Information Technology graduate Afifaa Fairos and Petroleum Engineering graduate Abdul Haziq Abdul Yazid received the silver and bronze respectively.
Computer Engineering graduate Muhammad Fathy Rashad received the Best International Undergraduate Student Award.
Bavoh Cornelius Borecho, a Chemical Engineering graduate, received the Postgraduate Best Research Award for the doctorate’s category while Shamsudeen Temitope Yekeen, a Civil Engineering graduate, received the award for the master’s category.
Meanwhile, Syahidah Mohd Khairi, an Applied Computing graduate, received the Best Student Award for Master Programme by Coursework.
The convocation ceremony was held in strict adherence to the standard operating procedures - prioritising safety and health precautions as well as physical distancing.
PETRONAS Chairman Tan Sri Dato' Seri Mohd Bakke Salleh, UTP Pro Chancellors Datuk Tengku Muhammad Taufik and Tan Sri Zaharah Ibrahim and UTP Board of Directors graced the event with their presence. Also present were UTP Vice Chancellor Professor Ts Dr Mohamed Ibrahim Abdul Mutalib and former Vice Chancellors Datuk Dr Rosti Saruwono and Datuk Ir (Dr) Abdul Rahim Hashim.
