KUCHING: The Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister has urged the corporate sector and big businesses to support What About Kuching (WAK) as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) contributions.
Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah made the call in his speech at the closing of this year’s month-long WAK on Tuesday night.
His speech at the WAK 2019 After Party at Location X (old Ting & Ting Supermarket) was read by his assistant minister Datuk Sebastian Ting.
Karim was confident the event next year would again set new milestones.
“This can only be achieved if we all continue striving along the charted path set before us,” he said.
He urged the organisers to maintain their partnership with the Sarawak government the private sector, sponsors and collaborators to ensure its sustainability.
Meanwhile, WAK festival director Donald Tan, said this year’s festival had entered a new phase with a few collaborators from outside Kuching and Sarawak.
“Malaysian Writers Society, PoetsPassportMY and Jamal Raslan, theatrethreesixty, Joanne Kam and her troupe, Douglas Lim and his team from Malaysian Association of Chinese Comedians (MACC), comedian Kavin Jay, comedian Brendan Goh and ‘I Laugh KL’,
and even photographer Ivan Kuek from Singapore added to the great excitement at this year’s event,” he said.
He added WAK would always endeavour to bring its own Sarawak stars back home to perform and inspire. He named some of the
stars as Alena Murang, Amir Jahari, Nice Stupid Playground and OAG who played to packed halls this year.
“This is hopefully the start of WAK becoming not only a local but a regional festival of arts, culture and lifestyle.
“Coupled with our condition of always having local connections, this injection of more international talents will help us lift our own local content to an even higher level in the years to come,” he said.
Tan said that WAK 2020 would take place from October 1-31.“Collaborators, take note that our Call For Proposal will commence a month earlier in March 2020 so do keep a watch out. This is so we can circulate the WAK 2020 Calendar at the iconic Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF),” he added.
Tan hoped Kuching City through WAK could be the hub of arts every October.
