KUCHING: Assistant Minister of Education and Technological Research Dr Annuar Rapaee disagrees with the assumption that one is unpatriotic if he or she prioritises English over Bahasa Malaysia. “Personally, I do not agree with it because both languages are important and furthermore, both have been accepted as the state’s official languages.
“We must learn to master English to gain knowledge but at the same time, we must also preserve Bahasa Malaysia because it is our national identity.
“Bahasa Malaysia is what unites us all as Malaysians,” Annuar said when speaking during the launching event of ‘Anugerah Tinta Kenyalang & Malam Lestari Bahasa 2017’ at Pullman Hotel in Kuching on Wednesday evening. Annuar, who keeps a watching brief over the state Dewan Bahasa Dan Pustaka (DBP), also said that he does not agree with using force on the people on the usage of Bahasa Malaysia.
“Instead of forcing the usage of Bahasa Malaysia which can further discourage people, we should focus on initiatives such as organising seminars on how to develop the language. “We should also focus on how to make our people more fluent in Bahasa Malaysia as well as how to preserve it,” he said. The event, which was an award ceremony with the objective of celebrating literature in the state and celebrating the state’s literature writers, saw the presentation of awards to the winners.
For the ‘Anug e rah Ci t r a Majalah 2016/2017’ for secondary schools, the main winners were Randy Gardaffy from SMK Dato Permaisuri, Miri (poetry category); Ahmad Shafiee Moh Apendai from SMK Tun Abang Haji Openg, Kuching (short story category); Sylviana Fiona Elivis from SMK Subis, Miri (essay category); and SMK Subis, Miri (best magazine category).
For the ‘Hadiah Sastera Penulis Sarawak 2016/2017’, the recipients were Zainal Abidin Suhaili, Halimatus Sa’adiah Yahya, Haji Jais Sahok, Mohamad Faizal Jamil, and Zaini Bilong for the poetry sub-category.
As for the short story sub-category, the recipients were Abang Median Abang Said, Frankie Latit, Haji Jais Sahok, Mohd Ali Salim, and Naziah Naziri. For the critical essay sub-category, the recipients were Dilah Tuah, Mohamad Aziz Abidin, Mohamad Faizal Jamil, the late Haji Jali Haji Kenoi, and Benyamin Matussin.
Finally, for the ‘Anugerah Citra Buletin Jabatan Negeri Sarawak 2016’, the main winner was the State Land and Survey Department. Also present during that night were the state DBP director Dr Hazami Jahar i and Kuching North City Commission (DBKU) Datuk Bandar Datuk Abang Abdul Wahap Abang Julai.
