AS the country celebrates 64th year of nationhood, the never-ending debate between difference between Merdeka Day and Malaysia Day started again on Twitter.
“Hey hey, just a friendly reminder that August 31st is the anniversary of Malaya’s independence, not Malaysia’s Birthday k. Malaysia’s birthday is Sept 16th,” said user Roshan Kanesan.
User Norman Goh added: “Malaysia is 58 years old this year, it was established in 1963 as Federation of Malaysia when Malaya, Singapore (later expelled in 1965), Sabah and Sarawak came together in a merger of the territories.
“Not 64 years. That’s the Independence Day of Malaya on 31 August 1957.”
The common misconception between the difference of Merdeka Day and Malaysia Day has always been a source of contention of many, especially among some quarters in East Malaysia who refuse to recognise Aug 31 as the national Independence Day.
In their argument, it was Malaya that got its Independence on Aug 31, which had nothing to do with Sabah and Sarawak. They hold the significance of Malaysia Day in their heart as that was the time the two regions came together with Malaya to form Malaysia.
No Malaysia before 1963
User Tanak Vagu shared the same view saying that Malaysia never existed before Sept 16, 1963, adding today is the day Malaya got its Independence from the British.
“Malaysia weas formed in 1963 when North Borneo (Sabah), Malaya and Sarawak signed the MA63 (Malaysia Agreement),” he stated.
User Clark remarked: “Sarawak, Sabah & Singapore did not join Malaysia. The right word was “forming Malaysia”. If we joined Malaysia, then Malaysia entity itself is Malaya from the start.”
It is note that Singapore too joined Malaysia under MA63 but was expelled in 1965 due to huge disagreements between the Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman and Singapore leader Lee Kuan Yew.
As of press time, over 12,000 people have tweeted on the matter. – Aug 31, 2021.
