National-level celebrations should also be held in rural areas: Najib
BAGAN DATOH: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak tonight said national-level celebrations should not only be held in big towns such as Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.
Instead, he suggested that such celebrations, including Aidilfitri open houses, to be held in small towns or rural areas to give opportunities for the people there to also share the joy and meet leaders.
"National-level celebration should not just be held in Kuala Lumpur or Putrajaya, but it also should be distributed to the rural areas because the people there also want to celebrate.
"Apart from that, they also get the opportunity to meet leaders, and in this way we can forge relations with the local residents," he added.
The prime minister was speaking at the 2016 Aidilfitri Malaysia Open House, which was attended by about 50,000 people at the field of Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Hutan Melintang near here.
Also present were his wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor; Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and wife, Datin Seri Hamidah Khamis; Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz; Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein; Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir and wife, Datin Seri Saripah Zulkifli and a few cabinet ministers.
Najib said hosting open houses at national level helped promote peace and harmony.
"This is something that cannot be denied. In some other countries you cannot have such celebrations because something bad may happen, that can cause harm to lives and properties.
"Remember that peace and security must not be taken lightly as we are still not free from security threats," he said.
The prime minister was referring to the arrest of 14 individuals in five states from July 14 to 20 for their alleged involvement with Daesh militant groups.
Meanwhile, Najib also announced Bagan Datoh as a full district, making it the 12th district in Perak.
Prior to this, Bagan Datoh was Bagan Datoh was under the administration of the district of Hilir Perak.
It was gazetted as a district last June 15. — Bernama