Sabah’s Unduk Ngadau beauty pageant postponed

The Unduk Ngadau beauty pageant is usually one of the highlights of the month-long Kaamatan harvest festival. (Bernama pic)

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah’s Unduk Ngadau beauty pageant, originally planned as a closed-door event with strict health measures in place to ward off Covid-19 infections, has been postponed.

Peter Anthony, the state-level Kaamatan central organising committee chairman, said a new date would be announced later.

“The decision was made after I was told by the event’s secretariat that many of the contestants had asked for enough time to get ready.

“It also took into consideration the views of the public and the need to protect the sensitivity of Sabah’s indigenous communities,” he said in a Facebook post last night.

The final of the pageant, part of the Kaamatan harvest festival, was supposed to be held on May 31 at the KadazanDusun, Dusun Murut Cultural Association (KDCA) hall in Penampang and aired live online.

However, KDCA deputy chairman Jeffrey Kitingan said yesterday that committee members had agreed not to hold the contest at the venue, noting safety concerns for the participants.

This follows calls urging the state government to call off the event entirely and to use the RM150,000 prize money to help those affected by the pandemic.

In his post, Anthony acknowledged that the conditional movement control order was still in force.

He said a special meeting would be held to refine procedures for the programme and to ensure the welfare of participants. - FMT