PAM COUNCIL 2001/2002 - A REVIEW

It has been 10 months since I assumed the Presidency of PAM. I must admit that the challenges had initially appeared daunting, but over a period of a few months and with the support from the majority of Council members, Past Presidents and members, we, working as a team, have been able to achieve most of the objectives that the Council for 2001/2002 had set out to do.

The greatest regret that I personally have during this Council year is that quite a fair amount of Council's time and energy was channeled to address personal conflicts and grievances. There are already many threats and challenges confronting the profession and I would like to urge those members to resolve their personal conflicts and issues outside of PAM and not to waste PAM's time and resources on personal battles. We, the younger members, look towards the elders of our profession for guidance and support.

I recall what David Teh wrote, when he was President in 1988, the year when I passed my Part 3 Examination, in his President's Report 1987/1988, which was published in the August 1988 issue of Berita Akitek:

"It is the task of the President and the Council to reconcile all Members in order to harness all resources of the Institute for the task of maintaining and strengthening the profession. There are unfortunately, certain Members who, for reasons best known to themselves, take every opportunity to undermine Council.

...the President and Council have the duty to ensure that the workings of the institute are not disrupted by Members whose activities damage the framework on which the institute was founded, and on which the survival of the profession depends upon."

Unfortunately, the problems faced by David Teh during his Presidency are similar to the problems we are facing today, but aggravated and magnified by the electronic age.

As an Institute, it is our objective not just to promote the profession but also to ensure the Architect's responsibilities and roles are not further eroded. The recent incident on the Planner's objection to the Architect's Amended Act on the Architect's right to submit planning, CIDB's proposed amendments to Act 520, the Building Surveyor's proposal to have a Building Surveyor's Act, the proposal by CIDB to register qualified project managers; all these have serious implications on the Architect's role and practice of architecture. PAM with the active involvement of various committed members have submitted our objections, proposals and views through memorandums and attended many dialogues with the Minister of Housing and Local Government, the Minister of Works and the Minister of International Trade and Industry, and we are glad to inform members that we have managed to somewhat check the further erosion and encroachment on our turf by others.

However, the Institute has to be vigilant and closely monitor the challenges and ensure our views are presented and heard. I would like to take this opportunity to inform members that the amendment to the Architect's Act by LAM has been officially approved by Parliament on 17 June 2002.

We have also developed strategies to establish better rapport with the government agencies and ministries with the intention of promoting the architectural profession and to regain some lost ground. Under Mr. Boon Che Wee, who is headig the Government Liaison Committee, we have paid courtesy calls and had dialogues with Dato' Mustapha, Chairman of MTEN, Dato' Seri S. Samy Vellu, Minister of Works, Dato' Seri Ong Ka Ting, Minister of Housing and Local Government and presented our memorandums covering various issues affecting the building industry and the architectural profession. We are also proposing to pay a courtesy call to the Datuk Bandar, Kuala Lumpur and to the Chief Minister of Penang.

As we have constantly stressed, the essential elements which make architects as professionals are their integrity and competence. Competence is what a Architect possesses which cannot be taken away from him, which would give Architects the competitive edge. As such, Council for this year has planned a series of comprehensive CPD lectures and workshops, under the Chairmanship of Cik Wan Sofiah, covering a wide range of topics, with emphasis on practice issues.

To address the issue of project management which is essential in preparing the Architects in their practice, PAM, through Pusat Binaan Sdn Bhd, and led by Mr Chee Soo Teng, has also packaged a Project Management course covering 6 Modules and the course has been very well received. We would be running a condensed version of the Project Management course in the Chapters, the first one, in Penang, will be held on 6 and 7 July and 27 and 28 July 2002 whilst the second, in Kuching, will be on 11 and 12 August and 7 and 8 September

The design aspects are not neglected by this Council as many evening lectures featuring Architects speaking on design concepts or their works were also organised by Cik Wan Sofiah.

The IT Committee under the chairmanship of Mr. Jasmeet Sidhu has relaunched the new website which is definitely much improved as it is not only informative but interesting too. However, this is not the end of the task as we have to ensure the website is constantly updated so that members are able to get access to updated information and news about PAM, the profession and the building industry. We have engaged a full-time staff to update the website regularly. We welcome members' feedback so that we can improve the website further.

One of the objectives for this Council year is to establish closer rapport with members and the Chapters, so that we can establish common objectives and identify issues which are relevant and pertinent to the individual Chapters. We have successfully concluded our dialogues with members from the Klang Valley and the 4 Chapters, namely Sabah, Southern, Northern and Sarawak. In addition to that, a dialogue with Architects in Melaka was also held to also discuss the issue of conservation and heritage preservation.

PAM is also trying to profile the Chapters and their activities in Berita Akitek. Todate, we have featured the Sabah Chapter in the April 2002 issue and we hope to feature the other 3 Chapters in subsequent issues. In order to improve better communication with members, we also organised a Members' Night, which coincided with the presentation of Certificates to the newly-elected Corporate members of PAM.

PAM has also committed to the Ministry of Housing and Local Government to organise the International EAROPH Congress under the chairmanship of Mr. Lim Pay Chye to be held from 7 to 10 October 2002. The co-organisers are DBKL, IEM, MIP and REHDA. This is a very heavy commitment by PAM and we hope members would render their support to the Congress. To promote the image and profile of the architectural profession, we have promoted the Gold Medal Award that was awarded to Hijjas Kasturi not only through a Gold Award presentation dinner but also through the media. The entire Award has generated a tremendous amount of valuable publicity in the newspapers, not only to Hijjas Kasturi but also to PAM and to the architectural profession.

The Youth Committee under the chairmanship of Encik Azim bin Aziz has also successfully organised various site learning visits, involving the younger members.

Dato' Hisham Albakri, the Chairman of International Liaison Committee, is busy establishing a closer rapport with the international bodies. Dato' Hisham is running for the Presidency for UIA and if elected, this would be one of the greatest achievements a Malaysian Architect would attain. PAM is giving Dato' Hisham our fullest support and a delegation is being planned to attend the UIA Congress and Assembly in Berlin in July 2002.

Mr. Lee Chor Wah, Chairman of Publications Committee is responsible for the Majalah Akitek and he also assist in publishing 'Architecture Asia' which has been very well received. A Design Workshop to be conducted by Prof Anthony Viscardi, the interim Chairperson, Department of Art and Architecture of Lehigh University, USA, will be held on 10 and 11 August at the PAM Centre. This Design Workshop is specially organised for the students and younger graduates.

Under the Membership Committee headed by Mr. Lim Pay Chye, besides the Members Night, 2 design competitions have been held: namely the 'Colour on Buildings Award 2' and "Steel Roofing Award 2002". The winners would be announced during the Building Industry Dinner which would be held on 28 June 2002. The planning of the PAM Architectural Awards is currently on-going. Assessment would be completed by August and the prize presentation would be at our next annual dinner scheduled in September 2002.

The Fire Fighting Act on 'Designated Premises' has been enforced and the deadline for application is 1 August 2002. PAM represented by Mr. Chee Soo Teng and Mr. Chong Lee Siong have been actively involved, together with ACEM and IFE, to conduct road shows to educate both the building owners of the 'Designated Premises' and the 'Qualified Persons' (Architect and Engineers). This development will not only benefit the public to ensure building fire safety is being monitored, it would also create opportunities for Architects to offer their services in this area of expertise. As this Act affects most of the public buildings, we would strongly advise members to equip themselves with the necessary skill and knowledge to undertake this work. PAM is currently looking into the recommended fees scale for this work.

The other major tasks which this Council has undertaken are to finalise the 'Minor Works Contract' and the review of the PAM Form of Building Contract 1998. A working Committee under the chairmanship of Dato' Kington Loo, assisted by Mr. Chee Soo Teng have conducted workshops and organised a series of meetings to receive and review feedback in our redrafting exercise. The first draft is targeted to be completed to be presented to Council in July 2002. The review would also be accompanied by a guidebook and standard performas. Dato' Kington Loo would be the Editor of this guidebook.

The Practice & Projects Committee, under the Chairmanship of Mr. Chee Soo Teng, spends a large amount of time addressing complaints and queries from PAM members and the public, in particular on issues relating to progress certification for housing projects and practice matters. The Committee is still continuing with the Community Outreach Programme, where members of the Committee, on the first Saturday of each month, will be available at the PAM Centre, to offer free advice to members of the public who have problems concerning their house purchases or need advice on matters pertaining to the building industry. This service is much appreciated by the public and is also part of Council's objective to promote PAM as a caring institute. The Committee has finalised the PAM Practice Notes No 3 on "Quick Reference Guide to Compliance with Fire Safety Requirements under UBBL 84" and this will be circulated to members at the end of June.

The Arbitration & Mediation Services Committee under Mr. Paul Lai Chu has been busy addressing arbitration matters and also reviewing the current Arbitration Rules and has also finalised the the 'Code on Ethical Conduct for Arbitrators'. The 'Pupil-Master' programme has also been initiated with the intention of training more of our PAM members to be arbitrators. A course on 'Arbitration in Construction Disputes' led by Dato' Kevin Woo, to train arbitrators, will be held from 9 and 10 August and 16 and 17 August 2002.

The Education Committee under Mr. Sunny Chan, Cik Wan Sofiah and Cik Norwina Nawawi have also done well in organising the CPD lectures and tutorials to prepare those graduates who will be sitting for the LAM Part 3 Examination. With these intensive tutorials, the passing rate for the Part 3 Examination has improved substantially.

The Resource Centre is finally ready and members are welcomed to make use of the facilities. A committee would be formed to advise on the book selection policy and in principle, PEF has agreed to fund the book purchases.

All the Chapters, except Sarawak, have concluded their purchase of the Chapter premises. Sarawak is still sourcing for a suitable premise. PEF has also recently purchased a piece of residential building at a very prime location, at 3 Jalan Stonor, Kuala Lumpur.

This Council year, PAM together with the Board of Architects, are actively participating in both PSDC and Napsec to address the issues of globalisation, Gatts negotiation, capacity building and Export of Services. Dato' Esa bin Mohamed, Tan Pei Ing and a few others have been attending many of the meetings and discussions.

We have also not forgotten about the "fun" bit in the Institute. In June 2002, the PAM Charity Golf Competition was successfully concluded. The Golf Competition, ably organised by Datuk Ng Kee Seng, assisted by Mr. Lim Pay Chye and Mr. Paul Lai Chu, attracted a large number of participants not only from our own members but from our friends in the building industry. This year, PAM organised the golf competition as a charity event and the net proceeds and donations were donated to 3 charity organisations, namely the Monfort Boys Home, Shelter Home for Children and Rumah Charis. This is in line with PAM's policy to be a more caring Institute.

To promote better communication and transparency, we have under this Council, for the first time, implemented the policy to publish the summary of decisions by Council in the Berita Akitek. Non-Council members are also welcome to attend Council meetings as observers. We also try to make our Berita Akitek as informative as possible. With the relaunch of our website and a more comprehensive e-mail system, we aim to promote better communication with our members. We welcome all comments and suggestions so that communication between PAM and the members can be further improved.

A substantial amount of time is being spent by the Office Bearers to try to improve PAM procedures and Secretariat facilities to service members better. The Secretariat and Finance Committee under the chairmanship of Dr. Tan Loke Mun and Dr Asiah bt Abdul Rahim, are trying to formulate procedures and policies to target towards achieving ISO status for PAM.

PAM Council year has had dialogues with RIBA, SIA, ACEM, Japan Institute of Architects so far. The Building Industry Presidents Roundtable meeting involving the key players in the building industry has been formalised and re-structured to be officially known as the Building Industry Presidents Council and Mr. P. Kasi, our Past President on Council, who initiated the formation of this Building Industry Presidents Roundtable in 1997, was unanimously elected in May 2002 as the first Chairman of the Building Industry Presidents Council.

As there are many challenges confronting the architectural profession, the Institute is thus overwhelmed with a tremendous amount of work and has to address many issues which have serious implications on the profession, and these issues, if not addressed, would lead to a further erosion of the Architect's leadership role in the building industry.

I am therefore appealing to all members, just as David Teh appealed in 1988, that we must harness all resources of the Institute to maintain and strengthen the profession. The Institute must move forward and grow, based on the foundation it was built upon. We are at this moment trying to continue the foundation-building as we move forward.

Ms Tan Pei Ing
President