The contest to name the panda cub, which ran from November 17 to December 17 last year, received 22,830 entries from around the country.

About 50% of the entries did not meet the contest conditions, such as having incomplete information about the sender, and the absence of Chinese characters.

Wan Junaidi said out of those qualified, only nine entries were selected following a strict screening process by a panel of judges. The nine names have been sent to the Chinese Wildlife Conservation Association (CWCA) in China for approval.

The winner will receive a Perodua Myvi while Demak motorcycles await the second and third place winners.

The Malaysian Government received a couple of giant pandas named Xing Xing and Liang Liang from the Chinese Government on May 21, 2014 to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Liang Liang gave birth on Aug 18, last year. The baby giant panda was first exhibited to visitors at the National Zoo on Nov 17, after three months of quarantine.

– BERNAMA