SABAH will celebrate its inaugural Sabah Day on Aug 31 to commemorate the day it became independent from British rule 60 years ago, said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
He said the Sabah Day celebration will be held in Tambunan at 3 pm, after the National Day celebration scheduled at Kota Kinabalu in the morning.
Hajiji said the State Cabinet made the decision during its meeting last week and had chosen Tambunan as the venue for the inaugural celebrations.
“It was also decided (by the State Cabinet) that the celebrations to mark Sabah’s important historical milestone, be celebrated annually with the venue to be rotated among the districts.
SPONSORED CONTENT Daily Express members: Enjoy 1 for 1 signature cocktails and more at Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu Kota Kinabalu: DAILY EXPRESS is partnering with Hyatt Centric Kota Kinabalu to offer an exclusive deal for our members. Read more “Let us honour and commemorate the day which marked the end of the British colonial rule in Sabah and signifying our journey of coming together as a people to establish self-rule,” he said in a statement on Aug 21.
Sabah subsequently formed the Federation of Malaysia with Malaya, Sarawak and Singapore on Sept 16, 1963. Tambunan district is located in the interior of Sabah, about 75km southeast of Kota Kinabalu.
For the record, in 2016, the Sarawak Government led by Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem declared July 22 a public holiday for the first time to mark the date when the State gained self-government from the British colony as a prelude to forming Malaysia together with North Borneo (Sabah), Singapore and Malaya in 1963.
Then subsequently Sarawak has been celebrating Sarawak Day every year with special events.
Malaysia was originally supposed to be formed on Aug 31, 1963 to coincide with the Independence Day of Malaya on Aug 31, 1957.
However both the Philippines and Indonesia lodged a strong protest with the United Nations (UN) saying that “Greater Malaysia” was being formed in a hurry. This left the UN with no choice but to send a fact finding team to both the states to ascertain the wishes of the people.
In the meantime, first Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman advised Singapore, Sarawak and North Borneo leaders not to go ahead with their plans for self-government but to wait for the findings of the UN to be announced and for the new date of independence to be on Sept 16.
However, all the partners disregarded Tunku’s advice and proceeded with announcing their own dates for self-government.
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