Earlier we reconnected with Dato’ Siti Mazenah bt Saat via a telephone interview with Zalina Ismail and the post can be viewed at https://pyramidtales.info/2022/04/05/reconnecting-with-dato-siti-mazenah/.

Subsequently, she kindly consented to write a few words in remembrance of her days in the Public Services Department ( PSD ) and her links with the PSD scholars. Her write-up is published below.

Dato Siti Mazenah Saat was the first woman registrar of a University in Malaysia.

I feel very honored to have this opportunity to write a few words which tells the story of the life and achievements of those sent by the Malaysian Government to Egypt to study medicine in the early 1970’s, who have carved for themselves an illustrious place in the fields of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy.

The Malaysian Government through the Public Services Department (Training and Scholarship Division), found it very difficult to place students especially Bumiputras to study Medicine, in Universiti Malaya, which was at that time, the only university in the country that offered the course. However, the need for doctors was forever increasing and the government through the High Commissions in Cairo and Indonesia initiated a plan to get places in the universities there for the medical course.

The first batch of Bumiputra students from Sekolah Menengah Alam Shah (Malay Medium) were sent to Indonesia in the late 1960’s for medicine and science courses, while those from other schools were sent to Cairo to study medicine. As I was at that time the Assistant Director of Training and Scholarship Division of Public Services, it was my responsibility then to ensure the students sent were placed in the course at the various universities of those two countries, apart from my other responsibilities.

The students were really “green”, being the first time naik kapal terbang and the first time to go overseas. However, I was happy to note then that the students sent to Egypt by PSD and MARA adapted themselves very well there, and most of them obtained good grades in their examinations. The MARA officer in charge of MARA students that time was YAM Raja Dato’ Fuziah Raja Tun Uda. My last batch of students sent to Cairo was in 1974. It was in that year too, that I left PSD for Ministry of Education on promotion. At that same time, the Kelantan State Government was getting good response to send our students to Al-Azhar University to study medicine. Thus, Kelantan had requested PSD to sponsor the students. The Kelantan Government had been sending students for Islamic Studies and had therefore good relationship with the university.

On recollection, now all of them have become the gems of the nation. Some served the government and private hospitals, whilst some furthered their studies and became medical lecturers in the local universities. Though many have now retired from Government service,  some continue serving in the private practice, while some in the private universities.

I was fortunate, to have met again some of you in Universiti Sains Malaysia when I was Deputy Registrar, then Registrar of the University.

Last, but not least, I wish all of you the best in your endeavours. To those who are going through the full retirement, be happy with your family. You have already served the “Big Family, Malaysia,” well. I am proud of all of you.

Dato’ Siti Mazenah Binti Saat

Ex-Registrar of Universiti Sains Malaysia