PENANG, May 2015 - The Chief Executive Officer of the Malaysian Press Institute (MPI), Datuk Chamil Wariya received the Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD) in the field of Communication at the recently concluded Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) 51st Convocation.

Chamil, 62, was among 262 recipients who received their doctorate degrees from the USM Chancellor, the Raja of Perlis Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Ibni Al-Marhum Tuanku Syed Putra Jamalullail during the First Session.

He enrolled as a PhD student on 7 March 2012, and managed to complete his thesis in political communication in the minimum possible time of two years or four semesters, which in itself was a remarkable feat.

Chamil wrote a thesis titled ‘Najib Razak's Persuasive Strategies In Political Communication’, where he studied 15 speeches made by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak at the UMNO General Assembly from 1988 to 2013 using the Aristotlelian or neo-classical approach as the research framework of his thesis.

"Through my research, I discovered that Najib is a scientific person as in his speeches he made use of solid facts, in addition to statistics, proverbs, aphorisms, and so on to support his arguments.

“Najib also used testimonies and quotes from authoritative sources as well as the Quran verses to further support his points," he said.

The father of three children, all of whom have excelled in their studies, also advised the younger generation to always strive and give their best in whatever they do because success does not come without effort.

Chamil hoped that the doctorate he received would motivate other media practitioners to continue their studies in communication in USM.

Earlier, at the First Session, Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin in his speech urged the graduates to always hold firmly to those values that embody USM motto “We Lead” in their future endeavours, and continue to contribute to the nation and society.

“Our university has moved forward, with large number of graduates and an increased number of student enrollments at every level over the years. These large numbers however are not the true measurement of our success, for success also depends on the extent of our contribution to the nation and to society,” the Chancellor said.

He added that the success of the university was also seen in its ability to produce graduates who could lead the community through various organisations, institutions, corporations and even the world.

“Success should also be measured by the degree to which our graduates truly embody the motto “We Lead” at every level, including that of the family and society.”

The two-day convocation saw a total of 1,130 graduates receiving their scrolls. Of the number, 262 received doctorate degrees, 505 masters and 363 first degree. - Translation: Tan Ewe Hoe/Text: Siti Naquiah Binti Abdillah/Photos: Mohd Fairus Md. Isa