Gerakan has welcomed the government’s decision to declare Sept 16 which is Malaysia Day, a national public holiday with effect from next year.

Party president Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon said Malaysia Day should be celebrated by all Malaysian as it was on Sept 16, 1963, when Sabah, Sarawak and the peninsula states became one nation called Malaysia.

“Declaring Malaysia Day a national holiday will also give true meaning to the 1Malaysia concept,” said Koh in a statement, commending Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak for having answered calls by Malaysians especially those in Sabah and Sarawak.

Koh, who is also Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of National Unity said the 2 dates of 831 and 916, are equally significant. “831 marks the attainment of independence from colonialism, while 916 ushered the birth of a new and bigger nation called Malaysia,” he added.

Koh also noted that Gerakan was the first political party to celebrate Malaysia Day in Kuala Lumpur in a big way in 2007. “This year, we did a special cyber countdown for Malaysia Day,” said Dr. Koh.