By Mustakim Ramli
KUALA LUMPUR, June 6 — Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari has launched two foreign books translated into Malay under Inisiatif Buku Darul Ehsan (IBDE) at the Kuala Lumpur International Book Festival (KLIBF) 2022, here today.
The first book, titled ‘Mahligai Impian’ was written by 1988 Nobel Prize winner Naguib Mahfouz, while the second book, titled ‘Abu Bakar As Siddiq, Liku-liku Hayat dan Pemerintahan Khalifah Pertama’ was written by Egyptian minister cum culturalist Muhammad Hussien Haikal.
Amirudin, when met after the ‘An Evening With Menteri Besar Selangor’ programme, said the two translated books are among 40 books that the state government will publish.
“One book tells about an important Muslim figure, Abu Bakar, and of the Islamic thought and rule after the death of the Prophet, when he became the first Caliph.
“Meanwhile, Naguib Mahfouz's piece is of high quality as he was an Egyptian laureate and culturalist. Even though he was quite controversial, he was highly respected,” said Amirudin.
In the same programme, Amirudin also introduced the Selangor Basic Technology Loan Scheme (Sepintas) to aid students without their own electronic devices.
Currently, a total of 50 families have received assistance under Sepintas, which was introduced by the state government in November last year in collaboration with SmartSel and the Selangor Public Library Corporation.
