Thousands throng Putrajaya for Merdeka parade; Nepal teacher lauded for saving 900 pupils

 

Merdeka parade

• Tens of thousands of visitors started gathering at Dataran Putrajaya since 3.30am this morning to secure their place to watch the National Day celebrations, Bernama reported, walking for kilometres from their parking spots to secure prime locations near the main stage.

  The celebration is being held in conjunction with the 69th Merdeka Day, themed “Malaysia Madani: Kesejahteraan Dinikmati”.

  This year’s parade and procession involve 10,819 participants, including performances showcasing Malaysia’s cultural diversity and thrilling aerial acrobatics by the Royal Malaysian Air Force.

  The event ran for two hours from 8am until 10am.

  

  Despite earlier concerns about transboundary haze that affected the region in the preceding days, the Environment Department reported “moderate” air quality in Putrajaya.

Nepal floods

• A headteacher in Nepal has been credited with saving at least 900 of his pupils by ordering an evacuation just minutes before a massive flood hit his school on Wednesday.

  “If we had made the decision 10 minutes later, all of us, including the students and I, would not be able to speak to you today,” the headteacher Rajenda Dawadi reportedly told the BBC.

  According to German news agency DPA, Dawadi learned about the impending flood from several phone calls about 15 minutes before it reached the area.

  The 900 children fled the Tribhuvan Trishuli secondary school in the Nuwakot district on foot, while Dawadi diverted school buses carrying hundreds more children to school. Now, almost nothing is left of the school building.

  
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  The death toll from the floods has risen to at least 804 across Nepal and China, including at least one of the school’s staff members. Nearly 3,300 people are missing, including 91 Malaysians, across the two countries.

Politics

• Kedah Menteri Besar Sanusi Nor has reiterated that his harsh remarks over the gambling issue were aimed at gambling tycoons, not Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

  “I targeted the gambling tycoons. I did not target ustaz, religious leaders or the prime minister. I targeted the gambling tycoons.

  “Have the courage to speak the truth. They are harsh words, but they are true,” he reportedly said at the Generasi Pewaris Sejahtera Negeri Kedah 2026 convention yesterday, according to New Straits Times.

  

  PM Anwar Ibrahim and Kedah MB Sanusi Nor (right)

  Sanusi also urged the public to refer to the “original source” rather than others’ interpretations of his remarks.

  The PAS election director previously faced criticism over comments interpreted as wishing ill on Anwar, but maintained that he was referring to those who sponsored legal action challenging Kedah’s ban on lottery operations. - Mkini