BY GILLVEN MIXCOLLIN & SAMUEL KARUNIA KORNO
BAU: Deputy Minister for Transport (Riverine and Marine), Datuk Henry Harry Jinep, has expressed his gratitude to the 800 participants who joined a 2.4-kilometre cultural parade here on Saturday, showcasing the rich cultural traditions of the Bidayuh, Malay and Chinese communities.
The event, which started as early as 5 pm, saw participants donning traditional costumes and carrying ceremonial tools, symbolising unity and cultural diversity in Bau.
He highlighted the strong turnout and the enthusiasm of the community, despite the light rain and participants travelling from as far as Kuching.
“Today, we saw a significant number of people coming together at 5 pm, and we began our 2.4-kilometre walk at 5.30 pm, representing the unity of the Bidayuh, Malay and Chinese traditions here in Bau.
“The response is excellent, so congratulations and thank you to all 800 participants from the Bau area,” he said.
During his speech, Harry noted the importance of such events, especially during the Gawai celebration, which traditionally sees the Dayak Bidayuh community here coming together.
This year’s parade allowed various villages, including Tringgus, Bratak, Stass and Singai to display their unique traditional costumes and ceremonial items.
“This is a time for us to celebrate together in our villages, to visit each other (‘ngabang’), and to display our traditional costumes and tools.
“We saw different costumes according to the areas and the ‘Boris’ (Gawai priestesses ) with their traditional chants, as well as the ‘Sinda’ (knife) and other ceremonial items representing their respective traditions.” he said.
Additionally, Harry announced plans to make this parade a biennial event, with the next one scheduled for 2026 and he expressed his hopes for even greater participation, targetting 100 contingents from all Bau villages, government departments, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
“Why did we choose 2026? Because we have time to prepare all the equipment, costumes, and various decorations since we need time to get everything ready and we want to give time and opportunity for the Bidayuh children to engage in trade so that more traditional Bidayuh items can be sold.
“When we hold celebrations and activities here, it brings more people to Bau and helps develop business opportunities for the Bidayuh community,” he said.
