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By Karen Bong and Wilfred Pilo
KUCHING, July 22: In conjunction with the 60th anniversary of Sarawak’s independence celebration, DayakDaily interviewed fellow Sarawakians to share their comments on the occasion today.
When met at the venue of the celebration at Padang Merdeka, everybody was in high spirits and praised the past and present leaders’ far-sighted vision of bringing significant and sustainable development to the State.
They said the celebration is more than a symbol of hope, and it enticed more significant progress from our present leaders and future generations to emulate.
A government-linked company (GLC) officer from Saratok, Jacklen Kunjan, said the 60th anniversary of Sarawak’s independence should be celebrated and commemorated as it reflected our significant socio-economic development compared to the 80s and 90s.
“Sarawak is getting prosperous. We are better off now and live together in unity and diversity. This uniqueness is hard, but we are a tolerant community, which is good for Sarawak.
“Rural Sarawak and the towns continued to transform with the building of the Pan Borneo Highway. In Kuching, we will see autonomous rail transit (ART) vehicles on the road soon.
“Sarawakians are getting connected in physical and intangible forms, and the development gap between rural and urban is closing. This is good, and we want this kind of significant development to continue, and this is what our leaders want for the people.
“So today, we must be in high spirits as the celebration is significant and relevant for all Sarawakian to gauge our progress,” said Jacklen when interviewed.
Hailing from Simunjan but now living in Semariang, housewife Mordiah Bujang is in high spirits celebrating the occasion her husband, Dzulkarnian Ibrahim, and daughter, Amira Zahara.
“Today is a fun day and family outing with fellow Sarawakians. At the same time, I feel that the celebration is to thank our leaders who are ‘berjiwa rakyat’ (people-centric) and bring development to Sarawak,” opined Mordiah.
A businesswoman, Tan Soi Moi, who is a third-generation Chinese in Sarawak, said, “My father and I are ‘made in Sarawak’, and today is an important date and day for fellow Sarawakian as it is our independence.
“We have come a long way and can fend for ourselves now, and many things have changed with our Sarawak government.
“We don’t use kerosene lamps anymore, but we use electricity from clean energy. The lights are shining brighter for Sarawak, and we should celebrate and be proud on this occasion.
“We used buses and bicycles, and now we have hydrogen buses, and everything is available at a touch of a button. I am proud to be Sarawakian—it will be my home, and there is no other place in the world except Sarawak,” said Tan.
A retired civil servant, Anthony Ramanair, said the 60th anniversary of Sarawak’s independence celebration and occasion showed how far the State has come, especially in infrastructure development.
“What we see today in the parade is our symbol of progress and development from our previous far-sighted leaders that had become a reality.
“The State’s economy is good, and people live in prosperity and unity. I want Sarawak to progress, grow stronger, and develop sovereignty.
“Our young generation should follow in our leaders’ footsteps to build a better Sarawak,” said Anthony. — DayakDaily
