Search This Blog

Monday, August 14, 2017

Why Sabah Government celebrating Malaya’s Independence but not Sabah's?

KOTA KINABALU - “Although it is still another 17 days before 31st August, the Sabah government is all geared up to celebrate the Independence Day of Malaya. The Sabah government and its BN leaders should ponder and reflect why they are celebrating Malaya’s Independence and not Sabah’s,” said Datuk Dr. Jeffrey Kitingan.

Unlike their Sabah counterparts, the Sarawak government and their leaders are true patriots of their nation, choosing to recognize 22nd July as Sarawak’s Independence Day and commemorating and celebrating in style and gazetting it as a Sarawak National holiday from 2016.

Back on the Sabah front, it is all systems go to celebrate Malaya’s 60th Independence so much so that the Sabah government has planned almost no activity to commemorate Sabah’s Independence or Sabah Day on 31st August 1963 let alone to gazette it as a Sabah public holiday.

The Sabah government and its leaders should respect and honour Sabah Day and not behave like they are the foot soldiers of the colonial masters in Putrajaya and as though Sabah is a colony of Malaya disguised as the Federation of Malaysia.

The colloquial Malay idiom for such behavior is “seperti kerbau dicucuk hidung” literally meaning like buffaloes being led by a lease through their nose.

The Sabah government should also not force Sabahans to celebrate Malaya’s Independence come this 31st August 2017.

Likewise, the Federal government @ Malayan government should respect Sabah’s Independence on 31st August and not force Sabahans to celebrate Malaya’s Independence which although respected by Sabahans, have no or little meaning or to force Sabahans to celebrate Malaya’s Independence as Malaysia’s Independence.

Malaysia was formed as a new nation on 16th September 1963 and did not exist before that.   It was also never colonized and never gained independence from anyone.   

So historically and factually, there is no such thing as “Malaysian Independence”.    If it is Malaysian National Day then it should be 16th September, the date the nation was created.

It is high time for the Federal and Sabah governments to put things right.    It is still not too late for the Sabah government to declare Sabah Day this coming 31st August as a Sabah public holiday and to celebrate it in style like what the Sarawak government has done for the past 2 years.

As for true Sabahans and true patriots, STAR and its coalition partners in Gabungan Sabah, SAPP, Harapan Rakyat and PPRS, will be hosting the Sabah Day festivities on 31st August in Kundasang this year.    With the upbeat and rousing celebration in Kota Marudu last year, the attendance this year is expected to be much larger, which augurs well for Sabah patriotism and nationalism.

No comments:

Post a Comment