With the aim of promoting the Econsave Sinchew Charity Night for UTAR Hospital Fundraising-cum-UTAR 20th Anniversary Dinner, Econsave, Sin Chew Daily, Guang Ming Daily and UTAR have once again jointly organised a press conference and promotional campaign on 23 June 2022 at UTAR T&CM Centre.

The first press conference for the charity night was held on 6 May 2022 at Sungai Long Campus.

The Econsave Sinchew Charity Night, which aims to raise funds for the UTAR Hospital and celebrate the 20th anniversary of UTAR will be held on 6 August 2022 at HGH Convention Centre Sentul Kuala Lumpur.

Present in support of the press conference were Econsave Cash & Carry Sdn Bhd Executive Director Lai Sia Ling, Econsave North Division 2 General Manager Chua Yong Chiang, Sin Chew Media Corporation Bhd Communications and Promotion General Manager Tan Kim Chuan, UTAR Vice President for Student Development and Alumni Relations Prof Dr Choong Chee Keong, Perak Sin Chew Media Corporation Bhd Business Manager Foong Ching Mean, Penang Guang Ming Daily Deputy General Manager Ng Hee Kuang, UTAR Hospital Project Chief Pharmacist Loo Heng Hoe, Malaysian Artist Dato’ Elaine Kang and representatives of Econsave, Sin Chew Daily and Guang Ming Daily; together with UTAR and UTAR Hospital staff.

In his welcome remarks, Prof Choong expressed his gratitude to Econsave, Sin Chew Daily and Guang Ming Daily for their continuous support and for once again organising the Econsave Sinchew Charity Night to raise funds for UTAR Hospital. He also thanked Chairman of Management Committee HGH Convention Centre Datuk Eddie Heng for his sponsorship. 

He revealed, “We hope to raise RM3million for UTAR Hospital through this charity night. We believe that the public will continue to give strong support so that the not-for-profit hospital can be fully operational as soon as possible. The traditional Chinese medicine and counselling services, which started in April, have received enthusiastic responses from more than 2,500 people from all age groups. In addition, the inpatient service for T&CM Centre is also expected to start soon. The Medical Centre which will provide Western medicine service is expected to start operating in 2023.”

“UTAR has entered its 20th anniversary this year, and its development into what it is today depends entirely on the generosity of people from all walks of life. The University always tries its best to give back to society; the UTAR Hospital is one of the University’s important initiatives to give back to society. We aim to gradually become a professional medical service, research and training institution which provides excellent Chinese and Western medicine in Perak, Northern Malaysia and even the whole country. We also aim to provide affordable modern medicine and traditional complementary services and health services to the general public,” he added.

Tan mentioned, “The good response received by the T&CM Centre since its operation has proven the credibility of the hospital. The establishment of the hospital is not a short-term project because, in the future, upgrading facilities and providing more services are still necessary. These require continuous support from the community.”

He elaborated, “Chinese education has experienced many ups and downs along the way, and thanks to the donations of many unsung heroes, Malaysia now has a complete Chinese education system apart from the Greater China region. Chinese associations/businessmen, Chinese education and Chinese newspapers have formed the Chinese community, while UTAR is the crystallisation of the Chinese community. UTAR provides affordable tertiary education, including medical programmes, and cultivates many medical talents.”

In representing Econsave, Chua said, “It is an honour for Econsave to be part of this charity event again. The first charity performance was held last year during the pandemic through online and physical modes. With the support from the Chinese community for education, we have raised more than RM2.43million for UTAR Hospital.” He also wished the coming charity night would be a great success. 

Ng briefly explained the programme of the charity night and said, “The first charity performance that was held last year was a new attempt made by our team after the pandemic. This will be our second collaboration to raise funds for UTAR Hospital.”

Additionally, Dato’ Kang was invited to share some highlights about her and her team’s performances. She also donated RM5,000 to UTAR Hospital in response to this charity event.

The press conference and promotional campaign ended with a hospital tour led by Prof Choong.

UTAR Hospital is a not-for-profit hospital that will not only provide medical and health services to the community but also provide practical training for the University’s medical students in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. The establishment of UTAR Hospital will also benefit Kampar and the surrounding communities with increased socio-economic activities and better access to quality medical services.

For more information on UTAR Hospital and donations to the hospital, please go to the following website: https://utarhospital.org.my/