JEDDAH, 7 October 2006 — Mathews Kurien, former governor of the Gulf Toastmasters’ District and the first Indian to hold the prestigious post has a little advice for those who provide advice.
“The one person I can be sure of changing for the better is myself,” he said. “The change and improvement should start with me and then, and only then, I could hope of changing others.”
A nominated member of the Higher Board of all the International Indian Schools in the Kingdom, Kurien received the Hind Rattan Award from the NRI Welfare Society in 2005.
Kurien, general manager of Azcome, believes that the Toastmasters club, which has branches in over 92 countries, had played a big role in developing his leadership skills and improving his personal and professional life.
“I would say that me serving as the toastmasters’ governor was instrumental in putting me under consideration for most of the positions I have held and the recognitions I have received,” he said.
Kurien called for the establishment of a Saudi-Indian cultural forum. “Both our countries have rich and value-based cultures,” he said. “Exposure to each other’s cultures on a common platform will definitely cultivate better understanding and mutual respect.”
In an interview with Arab News, Kurien emphasized the importance of gaining excellence in communication to achieve success in life.
“It is universally accepted that irrespective of your profession you need to be a good, if not excellent, communicator and leader to succeed in your field of work,” he said.
Over the past 82 years, Toastmasters, he says, have come up with proven training programs, which help its members to learn the basics of communication skills and provide them with a platform to try and practice them. Kurien hails from Pulickaparambil family that resides in Ayamanam village of Kottayam District in Kerala, which became famous after Arundhati Roy’s 1997 novel “The God of Small Things”.
He came to Saudi Arabia in 1979, and, while working in the Kingdom, he secured a diploma in rubber technology and applications from Munich and another in conveyor belt applications and maintenance from the Netherlands.
He has worked with various companies in the Kingdom in different capacities.
Despite some of the hard realities he had to encounter as an expatriate worker, Kurien says he is enamored by the action and attitude of many Saudis. He recounts how a Saudi police officer helped him in 1986 when he had flat tire while traveling to Ahsa with his wife late at night.
“By the time I had opened the boot and started taking out the jack, other tools and the spare tire, a police car came out of nowhere and parked right behind my car with the headlights on,” he said. “The policeman, even without me asking for help, changed the tire and put the flat tire and the tools back in their respective places in the boot. Even now I recollect fondly whether I would find such a kind-hearted, service-oriented and helpful cop anywhere else in the world?”
Kurien expressed his satisfaction over the expanding Saudi-Indian relations.
“Knowing and understanding each other is the first step in improving relations,” he said. “I think that most of the old generation Saudis are hesitant to open up. Indians, in general, on their part, have taken ‘why should I bother’ attitude. I would like to add that, slowly but surely a positive trend to know each other better is emerging.”
He hoped that the historic visit of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to New Delhi would take bilateral ties to new heights.
He says the formation of organizations such as Saudi-India Business Forum will help foster the relationship between Saudis and Indians.
Kurien urged Saudi employers and officials to empathize with expatriate workers by providing them with better treatment and facilities.
“Most expatriates have sacrificed personal comforts (of course for their own financial benefits) to work in Saudi Arabia,” he said. “If the Saudi sponsors and officials could understand and appreciate this and empathize with the expatriate workers, I am sure the expatriate community would reciprocate by making more sincere and quality contributions.”
He advised Saudis to make use of educational opportunities in Kerala and other Indian states to become competitive in this changing world.
“They can get the most modern and advanced education, comparable to that is provided anywhere in the world, at reasonable rates in a country which respects and upholds human values,” he added.
Kurien urged the Kerala government to make optimum use of the state’s huge investment potential in education and tourism. He also emphasized the need for streamlining Keralite organizations in the Gulf to help them provide better services to the community.
“There should be a mechanism or system in place to ensure that these organizations are doing what they are meant to do: serving people.”
