By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Aug 16: DayakDaily’s third annual writing competition, themed ‘Homestay Odyssey’, concludes with a successful awards ceremony for 10 winners, officiated by Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry, and Performing Arts (MTCP) Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah today.
This year, DayakDaily invited 20 shortlisted participants, with 10 emerging as winners in the writing competition held from March 18 to June 31.
A total of 111 entries were received, comprising 74 from the Adult Category and 37 from the Youth Category.
In the Adult Category (19 years old and above), Charraine Sudin from Miri won the Gold Award, earning a cash prize of RM3,500, a trophy, a certificate, and a three-day, two-night (3D2N) voucher at the Imperial Hotel. Her winning entry, ‘The Sea Dragon’s Shangri-La’, captivated the judges with its enchanting portrayal of a local homestay rich in the legend of a mythical dragon.
Ashley Kho Jia Yik took the Silver Award with a cash prize of RM2,500, while Elizabeth Chen Ching Ying claimed the Bronze Award with RM1,500. I’rfan Akmal Azman and Benedict Samling received consolation prizes of RM500 each. All winners also received a trophy and a certificate.
In the Youth Category, Ian Liew Ting Yee from Sibu took first place, receiving RM2,500 in cash, a trophy, a certificate, and a three-day, two-night stay at the Imperial Hotel. His story about love, loss, and finding the strength to carry on moved the judges, showing how grief can be shared and how it ties meaningfully to the homestay experience.
Bernard Yong Qian Ze secured second place with a cash prize of RM1,500, and Adeline Ting Sze Jing was the third-place winner, receiving RM1,000. Consolation prizes of RM200 each went to Christian Richardson Donald and Gayle Avril Chan Ai Wen. All Youth Category winners also received a trophy and a certificate.
Meanwhile, all the top ten winners for both categories received a certificate.
Also present were Deputy Minister to the Ministry Datuk Snowdan Lawan, Deputy Permanent Secretary to the Ministry Julin Alen, Pertubuhan Wartawan Bebas Kuching (Pewarta) president Peter Sibon, and DayakDaily director Lian Cheng.
The writing competition was organised by DayakDaily and sponsored by the MTCP. — DayakDaily
