KUCHING: July 22 is definitely Sarawak Day, but more importantly and officially it is Sarawak Independence Day because it is gazetted as such, said Sarawak Association for Peoples’ Aspirations (Sapa) president Dominique Ng.

“There is a lot of meaning in it. Tok Nan (the late Pehin Sri Adenan Satem), when he decided to declare this Sarawak Independence Day, he had a message for all Sarawakians.

“We are hearing it loud and clear. There is nothing to fear. It is something all Sarawakians are hoping for.

“The day will come,” he told reporters during a press conference and launch of 722 Sarawak Independence Day 2019 at Padang Merdeka on Saturday.

Ng noted that the event is set to be a historic one this year, as they actually have gotten the state government’s permission to conduct it.

“This is historic as it is the first time the state government has given us approval to conduct this event at Padang Merdeka.

“Even St Thomas Cathedral has allowed us to use the parking there. Everyone is giving us their full cooperation.

“As this is Sarawak’s own day we want to celebrate it as grandly as possible,” he said.

Ng encouraged all Sarawakians to join the event, which will start at 8am.

He hopes it will draw a substantial crowd of a “couple of thousand” people, or around 2,000 to 3,000 based on previous estimates from past years.

“The highlight of the event is the singing of Fairland Sarawak and the raising of the Sarawak flag, for this represented Sarawak for more than 100 years.

“We would like to remember that,” he said.

Earlier, organising chairman and Sapa member Anthony David briefed the media about the activities lined up for the day.

“It is a day of celebration with picnics and various fun activities, such as a tug of war contest, gathering of Vespa scooters, big bikers, modified cars and even decorated cars.

“I urge all Sarawakians to come out and support this event. If they can come dressed in traditional gear, they are most welcome,” he said, expressing his appreciation to the police and Kuching City North Hall (DBKU) for giving them the permit to use the field.

Also present were Sarawak State Reform Party chief Lina Soo and representatives from Sarawak Liberation Movement (SLM), The Sarawak for Sarawakians (S4S) and others.