14,500 participants will take part in National Day parade

KUALA LUMPUR: A total of 14,500 participants will take part in the 2016 National Day Parade, which will be held at Dataran Merdeka here on Aug 31.
Prime Minister's Office (Ceremonial Division) Secretary Datuk Kamis Samin said the participants would be involved in 10 different segments of the show and parade.
"We have 10 segments which are nationhood, public services, economy, animation, sports, self-esteem, public order, national security, air show, and the spirit of unity segment," he said when appearing as a guest on TV1's talk show "Selamat Pagi Malaysia" today.
Kamis said the parade will begin at 8am starting with the Malaysian hood segment that would involved participation of youths carrying the Jalur Gemilang and state flags as a prelude to the event.
"Whereas in the segment on public services, it will feature civil servants together with several associations namely the Women Civil Servants Association, the Police Wives Welfare Association and also the Armed Forces Families Welfare and Services Association," he said.
Kamis said a total of 37 agencies involving the private sector and government-linked companies (GLCs) would be involved in the economy segment of the parade, led by Khazanah Nasional.
"For this year's animation segment, we will show BoBoiBoy. We have three giant balloons that will be brought by the participants during the parade.
"The participants and viewers at home can watch the giant balloons and is part of the 'Wow Factor' that we will display this year to attract more visitors, especially children," he said.
In addition, he said athletes would march in the parade for the sports segment.
"This is because we will be hosting the SEA Games next year. We will have our Olympic heroes participating in the parade, in which they will be on a 'Hop on Hop Off' bus marching with our contingent.
"In addition, about 4,000 entries from school children will also be involved in the field events," he said.
Kamis said, for this year, the police would be making a special performance in front of the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, while the Malaysian Armed Forces will show more assets for the air show such as helicopters, jet fighters, and trainer aircraft.
He said the two-hour parade would end at 10am.
"We encourage the public to use Light Rail Transit (LRT) for those who would like to watch the parade at Dataran Merdeka and to avoid jams, better come early and find a strategic place," he said. — Bernama