Azalina First Malaysian Cabinet Minister At Everest Base Camp

Azalina spent about 15 minutes at the camp to flag off the Merdeka de Everest expedition team of seven climbers led by National Adventurers Association president Datuk Khalid Yunus, 64, who aim to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the highest peak in the world, over the next two days.
"Those without proper training or are not fit enough are advised not to be at such an altitude for more than 10 minutes because they can catch mountain sickness," said the ministry's Deputy Director-General Madzrib Ibrahim.
Madzrib was in Azalina's delegation to Nepal and to the Everest base camp.
"We hope to put her name in the Malaysian Book of Records as the first minister and the first female minister of Malaysia to set foot at the base camp," he said.
Azalina and 10 of her delegation members reached the base camp at around noon on Friday in a Russian-made MI-17-IV helicopter and took off about 15 minutes later.
She handed over the "Jalur Gemilang," the Malaysian flag, and banners to the team members to be flown on Mount Everest's summit at 8,848 metres above sea level.
Other than Khalid, the other members of the team are 2004 national Everest heroes Ahmad Reduan Rozali, 25, and Muhammad Fauzan Hasan, 39; Ahmad Fakhri Abu Samah, 25, Mohd Rafi Kori, 35, Radio and Television Malaysia (RTM) cameraman Idris Said, 51, and sole woman climber, RTM's assistant producer Marina Ahmad, 25.
The expedition is part of Malaysia's 50th independence anniversary celebrations.
Khalid, 64, is also trying to put his name in the record books as the oldest Malaysian to scale Everest and Marina as the first Malaysian woman to do so.

tunku : what's the big deal in this,any tom dick and harry can go at the base camp. if she is the first cabinet minister to reach the peak than it should be "the news".