LETTERS: I can't forget the meeting with Royal Professor Ungku Abdul Aziz Ungku Abdul Hamid during the Aidilfitri celebration in 1970 as on that day we, a group of Russian students at the University of Malaya visited him, the UM Vice Chancellor.
We heard a lot about him, saw him from afar on campus but never met him before personally. We felt very indebted to Ungku Aziz for helping us so much that we could study at the University comfortably.
He helped us get a place in the Fifth Residential College and successfully convinced the Russian ambassador to give us permission to go to the village Pahang Tua for staying there with Malay families for a month.
We are sure he must be at home and were not mistaken. His wife, a well-known journalist in Malaysia, Azah Aziz, told us proudly after receiving a bouquet of flowers, that that morning more than 30 people had visited her house and that she and her husband were happy to welcome us.
And a lively conversation began. We expressed our admiration for the University and the friendliness of Malaysians, sharing the impressions of the first months of our lives on campus.
Azah entertained us with homemade cakes and enthusiastically told us her experience when she visited Russia. Ungku Aziz smiled. And for us there was no more friendly person than him in the whole world. It's no coincidence that he was very popular with students.
And now he has gone, a legendary man of the country. I feel very sad. I express my deepest condolence to his relatives. His name and his contribution to the country will be remembered forever.
DR VICTOR A. POGADAEV
Moscow, Russia
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times