NILAI, 17 November 2018 – Puteri Nur Nadia Bakri, 22, the Bachelor of Science in Food Biotechnology student from the Faculty Science and Technology, Islamic Science University of Malaysia (USIM) was chosen to represent Malaysia to the International Holy Quran Award competition in Dubai.
She joined the Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak International Holy Quran Competition which ran from 4 November until yesterday (16 November). The competition is only open to female memorisers and attracted participation from 63 countries including Malaysia.
The countries vying in Dubai include Brunei, Indonesia, Filipina, Sri Lanka, Kuwait, Algeria, Sudan and the host UAE. Puteri Nur Nadia represented Malaysia after winning the 2018 National Quran Memorisation Assembly organised by the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) in April. She was representing Negeri Sembilan.
Even though she did not emerge as the top 10 contestants in Dubai, her participation is still a proud moment for USIM. This is her third international participation. Previously, she had emerged as the champion of MABIMS Quran Memorising Competition in Brunei Darussalam in 2015.
According to the ex-student of Maahad Integrasi Tahfiz Selangor, Kuala Langat, every competition she joined gives her a new experience and knowledge. She started to memorise Al-Quran from Form One and managed to finish memorising the 30 juz’ when in Form Five. “I am the eldest of eight siblings and my parent emphasised the importance of memorising Al-Quran”.
“In order to preserve the memorisation, I will focus on reading the verses about an hour every day after performing the Maghrib prayer while on campus. There is no teacher guiding me besides family members. But when representing the country, there are counsellors appointed to assist my memorisation preparation and I took this opportunity to increase my knowledge of Al-Quran recitation,” said Puteri Nur Nadia.
“Alhamdulillah, the atmosphere on the USIM campus suits my heart and I have friends who are always supportive and helps me in strengthening my memorisation from time to time. Inshallah if given the opportunity to represent the country in this kind of memorisation competition, I will do better,” added the final year USIM student.
She had faced a major challenge while memorising Al-Quran when she was inflicted with an infection while in Form Four. She was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit and had to take a three-month sick leave to recuperate. After she got better, she continued memorising Al-Quran and managed to finish it before leaving school.
The Dubai competition which is in its third year of hosting—and has a strong support from the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum—was held at the Scientific and Cultural Association Building in Al Mamzar, Dubai.
Prepared by:
Zaini Othman
Pusat Komunikasi Strategik (StraComm)
Aras 1, Canselori Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM)
71800 Nilai, Negeri Sembilan
Tel : 06-798 8026/78629/78620 Faks : 06-798 8032