Al-Sultan Abdullah (second from right) looking through some of the books exhibited at Khutubkhanah DiRaja after he was briefed on the proposal to sign memorandums of agreement for the setting up of the Al-Sultan Abdullah Research Centre for Pahang History and Civilisation.
KUANTAN: History is important as a foundation to the development of a civilisation and consequently, facts that tar the locals must be rectified, says the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
In highlighting the importance of history, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah said historical literature, for one, could motivate people to do better than their ancestors.
"Understanding historical events will give us a collective awareness as a shared experience to react to social, political, economic and cultural situations.
"History makes us what we are today. It is for this reason that historical literature of our homeland is important to correct the writings of orientalists especially during the British colonial period.
"Facts that trash the local residents must be corrected," he said after being briefed on the proposal to sign memorandums of agreement to set up the Pusat Kajian Sejarah Dan Tamadun Al-Sultan Abdullah.
Al-Sultan Abdullah was briefed by Raja Zarith Sofiah Centre for Advanced Studies on Islam, Science and Civilisation director Associate Prof Dr Khalif Muammar A. Harris and Associate Prof Dr Hamidin Abd Hamid from Universiti Malaya's department of history.
Al-Sultan Abdullah (second from right) looking through some of the books exhibited at Khutubkhanah DiRaja after he was briefed on the proposal to sign memorandums of agreement for the setting up of the Al-Sultan Abdullah Research Centre for Pahang History and Civilisation.
Also present at the briefing held at the Khutubkhanah DiRaja here were state Tourism, Culture, Environment, Plantations and Commodities Committee chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Sharkar Shamsudin, state secretary Datuk Seri Dr Sallehuddin Ishak and Pahang State Museum Corporation general manager Datuk Ahmad Farid Abd Jalal.
It was proposed for the centre to undertake research in selected disciplines such as archaeology, history, culture, civilisation and political science using the expertise, sources and cooperation networking to produce scholarly products in a systematic manner.
Among the objectives was also to preserve, improve and spread the understanding of valid historical and cultural knowledge to the public through programmes, broadcasting and publishing of scholarly works.
Al-Sultan Abdullah looking at a scale model of Istana Mangga Tunggal displayed in the Khutubkhanah DiRaja.
Al-Sultan Abdullah concurred with the proposal to set up the centre, saying that it was timely when society was being overwhelmed by the modern lifestyle.
He said it would be an entity to complement the museum's research and reference role where Pahang's historical and cultural materials could be researched in depth while also giving the space and opportunity to benefit researchers.
Besides that purpose, Al-Sultan Abdullah said the centre could also allow Malaysians to learn about their country's history.
"I feel this is an important long-term investment to ensure this generation and the next can appreciate their history and identity. What we do today is not only for us but also for our descendants who will inherit Malaysia," he said.
To that end, Al-Sultan Abdullah hoped the state government could support the setting up of the centre by providing a special annual grant so activities such as seminars, colloquiums and workshops could be organised.
