‘Malaysia Where Love Grows’, theme for 57th Merdeka Day celebration
(Bernama) – “I believe this theme will have a deep impact and fill the hearts of all Malaysians with love for their country”
‘Malaysia Where Love Grows’ was yesterday announced as the theme for the country’s 57th Independence or Merdeka Day celebration.
Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek said the theme was picked from the song “Warisan”, made popular by the late entertainer Sudirman Haji Arshad.
“I believe this theme will have a deep impact and fill the hearts of all Malaysians with love for their country,” he told reporters at the pre-launch of this year’s Merdeka celebration.
He also hoped that the theme chosen would not be politicised by any quarters.
This year’s celebration will begin with the “Doa Untuk Malaysia” (Prayer for Malaysia) at Putra Mosque, here, on Aug 15 followed by the ‘Fly the Jalur Gemilang’ campaign, which is scheduled to be launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on Aug 16.
The highlight of the celebration will be the Merdeka Day procession and parade at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur on Aug 31 while the national-level Malaysia Day celebration will be held in Sarawak on Sept 16.
Ahmad Shabery said there would also be the Konsert Harmoni Uniti featuring Malaysian and Indonesian artistes, symbolising the close regional friendship between the two countries.
“To relive memories of the Chow Kit Road concert, besides instilling patriotism through the late Sudirman’s songs, the Chow Kit Road Concert 2.0 will be staged for three days from Aug 29.
“This concert is to be held at Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, organised by RTM with Astro and Media Prima as its strategic partners,” he said.
The Merdeka Week programme, from Aug 28 to Sept 1, will include carnivals, exhibitions, seminars, sales promotions, shows and related events.
The sponsors include Celcom, TM Berhad, Axiata, TELIN Indonesia, Media Prima and Astro.
At yesterday’s pre-launch of the celebration, Ahmad Shabery also presented the winner of the Merdeka logo designing competition, Abdul Mutalib Abdul Rahman, with the cash prize of RM7,000 and a certificate of appreciation.
