16 September Celebration...

Guong

"Normally, the closing of the independence celebration is held on Malaysia Day on Sept 16," he told reporters at the breaking of fast with the media at the National Museum here tonight.
Quote by Unity, Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal taken from Bernama news as published in Yahoo news. link

"Normally"? Since when did this so called closing of the independence celebration started? And this coming from a fellow Sabahan?

When I first read this news at the Utusan Online, I thought that 16 September have been declared as a public holiday. And surprise, surprise, it was not. Read it and I'm sure you'd be confuse too. Well, since it was from them, I should have expected the 'confusion'.
The full story was this,

On the call for Sept 16 to be declared a public holiday, he said it would not be entertained as it would confuse the people between the independence day and the Malaysia day.
taken from Yahoo News. link

Why is it that this date is so 'sacred' to Sabahan and Sarawakian?

• It is sacred because it was a date of the forming of Malaysia when Sabah and Sarawak joined Malaya as Federal Government and not as one of the Malaya state.
• It is sacred because it was a date where Sabah and Sarawak joined Malaya not to achive Independence but accepting Tunku Abdul Rahman invitations. The real independence date for Sabah was 31st of August 1963 and for Sarawak was 22nd of July 1963.
• It is sacred because it is a reminder for the Malaya Federal Government on the 20-point agreement for Sabah and the 18-point agreement for Sarawak before forming Malaysia.

I've went to a number of local forums on the web which are based in the Peninsular of Malaya and it's really sicken me when most of the forum members doesn't even know the history on the forming of Malaysia. They only see 16 September as something political. Some even say that the Sabahan and Sarawakian demand it as 'candy' due to our huge contribution on the winning of the current government during the 12th general election.

It is more than just politic. It is about our rights. Rights that have been long ignored by the Federal Government. 45 years to be exact.