The Celebration of the Federal Territory Day (2012)



The Federal Territory Flag

         Federal Territory Day or Hari Wilayah Persekutuan as it is known in Malay, falls on 1 February and celebrates the anniversary of the formation of the Federal Territory in 1974. This day is declared a holiday in the Federal Territory, where visitors will see the streets transformed by parades and fireworks, with various cultural activities and fascinating exhibitions happening in a whole host of different locations.

      While this celebration is officially declared for 1 February, the moment it marks actually took place four days earlier, on 28 January, 1974, when the Sultan of Selangor and the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (head of state) signed an agreement to formally separate Kuala Lumpur from the state of Selangor and place it under a seperate Federal rule.

         Today, the Federal Territory comprises three cities: Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya. Labuan is an island off the coast of Sabah and joined the territory in 1984 as an offshore financial centre, while Putrajaya was a planned city, built as the administrative centre of Malaysia and was officially signed in on 1 February, 2001.

The Sultan Abdul Samad Building

      Merdeka Square was the focus of city folks and visitors to the capital to watch the parade to mark the launch of 2012 Federal Territories (FT) Day celebration yesterday. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak officiated at the ceremony participated by 94 contingents with 8,000 members representing government departments, schools, higher education institutions, corporate bodies, non-government bodies and banks. Also present at the celebration which started at 8.30am were the prime minister’s wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor and Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin.

Wowing the crowd

       Themed “Rakyat Bersatu, Wilayah Persekutuan Maju” for the federal territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, the celebration includes a procession of antique cars, superbikes and Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s cavalry contingent.The Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Ministry, KL City Hall, Putrajaya Corporation, Labuan Corporation, Federal Territories director of Land and Mines Office and Federal Territories Sports Council provide ‘gifts’ to city folks.

Posted by : Nageswarie Mahindran

                   Kuganesh Velaraj

                    Anita Raj

                    Rajeswary Vijayakumar

KUALA LUMPUR-‘ Hotspot’ for the HOMLESS?

KUALA LUMPUR - The heart of Malaysia is becoming the highlight of tourism spot in Asia. This leading country is facing a down fall in some aspect. One of the major mislead is contributed by homeless people in Kuala Lumpur. The main areas in Kuala Lumpur such as Jalan Hang Le Kiu, Petaling Street , and Masjid Jamek has been the ‘hotspots’ for the homeless to make it as their home. These homeless people are giving dreadful impressions for the foreigners about our nation. 

Around 600 homeless people, where 80 percentages of them are youths, can be seen sleeping along the roadside, bus stops, and in nearby buildings every night. These homeless people are said to be from Sabah where they are here in Kuala Lumpur to look for a job. When they aren’t getting any, these streets becomes their shelter during the day and night ignoring the rain and shine. 

According to an observer in Jalan Petaling, these homeless people are provided with meals everyday by some societies. These people, without a roof over their head, looks like they never worried about their everyday lives on the streets. It looks like they are enjoying their life in such a way as there is no much worry for them to care about. 

We can’t point our fingers to the official authorities and say they never did anything to overcome this dilemma. Yes! The government did allocate a shelter for these homeless people. Yet, this problem never seemed to take a rest. It looks like people are coming in more and more. 

What is the solution for this gigantic crisis? Are we going to fold our hands and wait for this matter to resolve by itself? Will this problem be solved once and for all?

In our opinion, yes, we can stop this dilemma once and for all but only in long term. We have to make it as a long term goal. Yes, I did say WE. Each and every one of us has to work together in order to put an end to this matter.  Homeless becomes a crisis when an individual fails to complete his or her responsibility as a son, daughter, as a brother, sister, as an employee or as a citizen. As a child to our parent or parents, when we neglect our duty to take care of our parents or siblings, they seemed to be looking for a shelter out on the streets. When there is no helping hand in the family, these homeless people are forced to move out from their home and become down-and-out. 

In conclusion, we as individuals have to work together in order to get our city cleaned from this deficiency.  In the future, Malaysia will become a homeless-free zone. Salam 1Malaysia.

Reported by, 

Nageswarie Mahindran

Anita Raj Silveraju

Kuganaeswari Velaraj
Rajeswary Vijaya Kumar