Students and individuals thronged the Perak state library recently to support the government’s call to instil the reading habit in the public. The 3000-odd crowd was part of the “Jom Baca Bersama Untuk 10 Minit” (Let’s read together for 10 minutes) programme organised by Perbadanan Perpustakaan Awam Perak recently.
The programme was aimed at making the library a convenient education facility for students in a bid to create a better skilled and knowledgeable generation.
Present to launch the event was Dato’ Nolee Ashilin binti Dato’ Mohammed Radzi, the Executive Councillor for Health, Tourism and Heritage. Nolee praised the timing of the event, which coincided with the World Book and Copyright Day on Wednesday, April 23. She proposed that a Reading Hour, something similar to Earth Hour, be declared.
During the press conference that followed, she expressed her pleasure that the reading habit amongst Malaysians had increased significantly from two books per person in 2005 to 8 books per person in 2010. The increase in visitors to the Perak State Library from 80,000 in 2012 to 100,000 in 2013 was also a significant development. She complimented the state library for organising activities to inculcate the reading habit in the public and urged the media to provide coverage for these activities.
The “Let’s Read Together” programme was being simultaneously launched in other state libraries throughout the country.
Angain
