Debate Team Excels in Kopitiam Ekonomi Debate Challenge

APU was invited to participate in the first ever kopitiam ekonomi debate challenge. Kopitiam ekonomi is an initiative by the Peformance Management & Delivery Unit (PEMANDU) of the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to engage with the community on basic economic principles and issues through an amicable and easy-to-use channel.

As part of the community engagement programmes, the Kopitiam Ekonomi debate challenge was organised on the 7th of September to bring together some of the nation's best debaters to discuss very pertinent issues relevant to the malaysian economy. 8 institutions were invited; including APU to participate in a three rounds debate.

The first two rounds determined whether the teams proceeded to the grand finals, competed in the third placing debate or are eliminated.

The first round saw APU debate from opposition against the imposition of consumption tax while UKM argued for it. In what was a very engaging and heated debate, the judges ruled in favour of APU for the superirority of analaysis and depth of economic contention against consumption tax.

APU proceeded to debate in the second round against MMU taking up the affirmative position (government) justifying how the full implementation of minimum wage in Malaysia will assist in enhancing competitiveness. Arguing that competitiveness is achieved through a well-paid labour therefore allowing for greater innnovation & competing on a global scale within the innovation market, the judges ruled in favour of APU.

The grand finals saw APU debating from Affirmative (government) for the motion that the move towards national reconciliation hinges on an inclusive economic policy while UT MARA argued against. The primary disucssion within the debate hinged on whether Malaysia was ready to implement economic inclusive policy and what the outcomes would be if and when it is implemented.

Arguing that the different factions in society will only come together when fully empowered to speak and act, APU was awarded the championship of the inaugural Kopitiam Ekonomi debate. The team consisting of Behrad Taadoli (Iranian), Moustafa Mahmoud (Egyptian) & Ashiq (Indian) successfully convinced the judges, through in depth analysis of the Malaysian diversity and societal composition, that a pre-requisite for the process of national reconciliation is economic inclusive policy.