Now that they’ve finally arrived and are safely housed in Zoo Negara, the two giant pandas from China, Fu Wa and Feng Yi, will be acclimatised to Malaysian culture a bit more: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak will be giving the pair new names soon.
Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri G Palanivel told The Star Online that the pandas’ new names will be announced by the Prime Minister at the national zoo’s official opening ceremony for the pair at the end of June.
The new names, he said, had been discussed by Najib and the Chinese ambassador to Malaysia, Dr Huang Huikang.
“He (Najib) himself will announce the names when visiting the National Zoo later,” he told the media after receiving the pair of pandas at Kompleks MASKargo, Complex, KL International Airport this morning.
The pair of pandas, a male and a female, were shipped over to Malaysia for a 10-year stay at Zoo Negara as a symbol of Malaysia’s 40-year diplomatic ties with the People’s Republic of China, whose anniversary falls on May 31.
During their stay here, the pandas will be the focus of Malaysian giant panda conservation research and allow local experts in the field to gain hands-on training. They have been placed in a state-of-the-art air-conditioned enclosure in Zoo Negara, and will undergo a month-long period of quarantine before being presented to the general public.
When asked about the delay of the pandas’ arrival in Malaysia, Palanivel said: “There’s no delay at all.” This is despite the fact that the original date of the pandas’ transfer to Malaysia was April 16. The transfer was said to have been postponed due to the case of missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, which diverted both Malaysian and Chinese resources towards search and rescue operations.
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