NEW YORK, Aug 19 (Bernama) — The new Malaysian Consul-General in New York, Abdul Razak Abdul Wahab wants to be more pro-active in getting close to the Malaysian community here and in other parts of the country.
Abdul Razak, 53, who takes over from Syed Mohamad Bakri Syed Abdul Rahman, said more than 16,000 Malaysians at 17 states in the eastern and mid-United States (US), came under the purview of the consulate.
The states are Arkansas, Delaware, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.
“Various programmes and dialogue sessions are being planned with the Malaysian associations in the states, and we are taking steps to resolve issues affecting the Malaysian communities, as well as maintaining interactive programmes through sports and cultural events.
“Among programmes which are being planned are the Treasure Hunt around Manhattan, which is open to all Malaysians living under the jurisdiction of this office,” he told Bernama at his office here Tuesday.
He said the consulate would also continue participating in programmes organised by Malaysians and meeting them through the immigration department.
The New York Consulate provides immigration services for Malaysians throughout the US, as well as issues visas for visitors to Malaysia.
He said the time taken for the issuance of passports had now been reduced and visitors could now obtain them on the same day.
“Beginning September, a new system which has been installed will shorten the time for renewal of passports,” added Abdul Razak.
The office now processes about 450 Malaysian passports each month, with more than 35 clients visiting the office daily for immigration matters.
Abdul Razak, who holds a masters degree in library and information science from Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia, previously served at Malaysian embassies in Cairo, Stockholm and Moscow.
On relations between Malaysia and the US, he said Malaysia was currently on the right track and heading towards better cooperation between the two countries.
He said US President Barack Obama’s historic visit to Kuala Lumpur last April had served as an impetus towards the two-way relations and strengthened Malaysia’s position as a major player in the global economy.
He said Washington was also keen to foster the security and diplomatic ties through prosperity growth and sharing when Obama agreed to consider Malaysia’s inclusion into the Visa Exemption Programme.
The US Government was reported as waiting for the arrival of the Malaysian representative to hold further talks on the programme and give technical briefing on the security conditions and information-sharing agreement.
The Visa Exemption Programme allows citizens of participating countries to enter the US without a visa for a period of 90 days or less.
To date, 37 countries have participated in the programme, including Brunei, Singapore, Taiwan and Japan.
— BERNAMA
