University of Malaya (UM) is one of the oldest and leading universities in Malaysia, which is why when the Chinese Language Society of UM was suspended, it garnered quite some attention on social media.
According to a statement posted on the society’s official Facebook page, they received the suspension notification from the Student Affairs Department on 30 October regarding issues with the administration of the society.
Apparently, the signage pasted on the wall for one of their events contained only instructions in Mandarin, and not the English and Malay Language; thus, someone reported this to the Student Affairs Department.
Acting on the complaint, the Student Affairs Department went through their records and discovered that the event has yet to receive the green light from the authorities; hence, the suspension was meted out. However, society has already applied from the hostel management and paid for the venue.
As a result, whatever resolutions that were passed in the society’s 32nd annual general meeting, along with all the activities planned for the first semester in 2017/18, would be suspended.
The society’s executive committee had submitted an appeal and negotiated with the university’s authorities but to no avail.
In a press conference today, the chairman of the society clarified that they’ve already provided an explanation to the university and that the problem stemmed from the society’s internal communication, besides using only Mandarin in the signage.
The society also apologised to all its members and vowed to try its best to lift the suspension so that all the planned activities could carry on.
This mistake has certainly cost the society a lot, considering all the time and energy that has gone to the preparation and planning of their upcoming events.
Let’s hope the society has learnt a lesson from this and that the suspension would be lifted soon. Anyway, it’s not a serious mistake, is it?
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