Monday, October 12, 2009

Belated but memorable Malaysia Day celebration


KUCHING: It was a memorable and meaningful night for thousands of Kuchingnites as Sarawak celebrated its first Malaysia Day on the night of Oct 10 at Padang Merdeka here.

As said by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak in his speech, the celebration marked the day when Sabah, Sarawak and the peninsula formed Malaysia 46 years ago.

“Malaysia Day means a lot because that was when Sabah and Sarawak agreed to achieve independence through the formation of Malaysia. Because of the decision of leaders at that time, Sabah and Sarawak have been able to prosper and become secure as part of Malaysia,” he said.

Earlier, Najib arrived at Padang Merdeka around 8.20pm together with Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud followed by Head of State (TYT) Tun Datuk Patinggi Abang Muhammad Salahuddin and Toh Puan Datuk Patinggi Norkiah.

Other VIPs were deputy chief ministers Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr George Chan and Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Alfred Jabu Numpang, federal and state ministers, elected representatives and community leaders.

The celebration was aired live on RTM’s TV1 at 8.30pm.

The celebration started with a group performance by 80 dancers doing an opening act on stage, followed by the national anthem ‘Negaraku’ and the state’s anthem ‘Ibu Pertiwiku’. These over, came another spectacular and colourful dance by the same dancers who were dressed in the traditional costumes of the various races. The dance was called ‘Selamat Datang 1Malaysia - 1Semangat, 1Tekad, 1Aspirasi’.

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