Malaysia’s National Day celebrations on Aug 31 will not be cancelled despite the worsening haze, although the scale or venue could be changed depending on air quality and weather conditions.
Communications Minister and Unity Government spokesman Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil said the Cabinet had directed Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Shamsul Azri Abu Bakar to hold discussions with relevant ministries and agencies this afternoon to assess the situation.
“The Chief Secretary to the Government will examine, together with the Ministry of Communications, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES), the Meteorological Department and several other ministries including the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Ministry of Health (MOH) to make a decision.
“This is based on estimates and projections of weather conditions over the next five to six days, including possible scenarios related to the haze situation,” he said at a post-Cabinet meeting press conference in Putrajaya today.
Fahmi said the discussions would determine whether the celebrations would proceed at the original venue at Dataran Putrajaya, be moved elsewhere or have their scale reduced.
“Yes, we will not cancel it, but whether the scale changes or the location changes. We will wait for the outcome of the Chief Secretary to the Government’s meeting this afternoon,” he said.
The decision will also take into account the participation of around 1,500 secondary school students from three states who are scheduled to take part in a human graphic performance during the National Day celebrations.
Fahmi said input from the Health and Education Ministries would also be considered, although the matter had not been decided at the Cabinet meeting.
Meanwhile, he said the eve of National Day programme scheduled for Aug 30 at Dataran Merdeka would also be reviewed in light of the haze situation.
