Reported by:
Sr3ScA Louise Kaien Too
Photography by:
Kuen Cheng Photography Club
On August 19th, 2024, Kuen Cheng High School held its regular weekly assembly. To begin with, Principal Madam Chua Lee Lee took the stage to share her experiences from a recent Chinese school principals exchange program in Shanghai, which brought together representatives from 22 countries.
In her speech, Madam Chua made several significant remarks. She said that the Chinese population in the United States is really passionate about protecting and honouring Chinese culture, and they are determined to pass it onto the next generation. On the other hand, she pointed out that many school principals in Indonesia are elderly because there aren’t enough successors, and this is because the May 1998 riots (also known as the 98 event), the civil unrest, prevented the next generation from being able to immerse themselves in Chinese culture and tradition. Her remarks about Myanmar were especially touching since she expressed her deep worries about the current civil war and how it continues to badly impact the lives of an important number of people there.
(Photo 1: Madam Chua delivering her thoughts on stage)
Immediately after the Principal’s sharing, Mr. Tan Yong Chin, Head of the Counselling Department, gave a presentation titled “Patriotic ING.” He first assessed the audience’s familiarity with our nation’s flag, Jalur Gemilang, which is a task that has been completed enthusiastically. Mr. Tan dived into the topic of patriotism about what is patriotic and how we as a Malaysian could display our patriotism. In the course of his speech, he brought up the remarkable statistic that nearly 99% of Malaysians love, and are proud of their own country. To conclude his talk, Mr. Tan invited the audience to raise their right hands and proudly recite Rukun Negara, the National Principles, together.
(Photo 2: The audience saying out loud the Rukun Negara with Mr Tan)
In the end, students from Sr2ScA, the class that came in third place in the senior choir competition, delivered a remarkable performance to end the assembly. Their mesmerising rendition of “南山南” (Nan Shan Nan) and emotional recitation of poems captivated and inspired the audience. This powerful conclusion effectively encapsulated the assembly’s ideas and left a lasting impact on everyone in attendance. It also functioned as a confirmation of the importance of being united and expressing one’s culture.
