KLCC A Hive Of Activity Ahead Of ASEAN Summits

By Yasmin Ahmad Zukiman KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 17 (Bernama) -- The Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC) is a hive of activity as Malaysia prepares to welcome thousands of delegates from this region and beyond at the 27th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits this week. Nothing escapes the observant eyes of Foreign Ministry officials tasked with spearheading preparations at the summit venue under the watch of the country's Foreign Minister Anifah Aman. From protocol and security to food and accommodation, everything has to be ready by the time world leaders like United States President Barack Obama, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi touch down to join Prime Minister Najib Razak at the meetings. Bernama caught up with Foreign Ministry's Head of National Steering Committee (NSC) for Logistics ASEAN 2015 Ilankovan Kolandavelu, as he scurried around the cavernous halls of the KLCC, to get an insight on the state of preparations for the Nov 18 to 22 meetings. "We have been preparing for this since two years ago, now is the culmination. Everything is going on smoothly and we're currently putting the final touches on all aspects of the summits," he said. Ilankovan said it all began with the setting up of the NSC by the government in October 2013, chaired by Anifah. Besides delegates from the 10-member ASEAN regional grouping and its dialogue partners, media personnel representing local and international media outlets are also expected to converge on KLCC. With the global leaders in town, security will be tight at the KLCC summit venue and other relevant locations. This is to be expected as Malaysian authorities are not leaving the matter of safety to chance in the wake of the deadly Paris attacks, which claimed the lives of more than 100 people last Friday and sent shockwaves around the world. Touching on the venue decoration, Ilankovan said the overall theme would showcase the concept of a people-centred ASEAN to make a milestone event in the history of the 48-year-old grouping - the formal establishment of the ASEAN Community, scheduled for Dec 31 this year. "The theme reflects the culmination of many years of work by all ASEAN countries," Ilankovan said of ASEAN Community which entails closer integration through three pillars - political security, economy and socio-culture. Besides sprucing up KLCC, the federal capital itself has been embellished with thousands of banners promoting the summits along with other decorative elements, including LED lights. On the gala dinner scheduled for Saturday, Ilankovan said the performances lined up for the event would be injected with elements of broadway as well as culture representing various ethnic groups in Malaysia. He said rehearsals had been carried out at the Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations since Nov 11 and a full dress rehearsal was scheduled in the next few days. "Prime Minister Najib Razak has indicated keen interest to witness the full dress rehearsal because he himself has personally given some ideas on what's to be reflected at the gala dinner, especially in portraying Malaysia as ASEAN chairman," he said. According to Ilankovan, Najib himself had a hand in selecting a couple of songs for the event, including those featuring Malaysia's acting and song legend P. Ramlee. -- BERNAMA