KUCHING : Pesta Samariang 2026 continues to strengthen community unity and foster appreciation of spiritual values among residents in the Samariang constituency.
Centred on the theme “Kerohanian dan Keagamaan”, the programme was held in conjunction with the opening of Surau Nurul Muslimin at the Kampung Sungai Bedil Besar, here, yesterday.
Deputy Minister in the Premier’s Department (Law, MA63, State-Federal Relations) Datuk Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali said the annual event gathered Samariang community, with various activities available to strengthen religious values and neighbourhood spirit.
“The event reflects the commitment of the Friendly Neighbourhood Committee (KJM) in fostering a balanced generation from an intellectual, personal and spiritual aspect.
“The goal of KJM is to create a community that maintains the cleanliness of the village and creates a safe community, which is evident with the clean river and the village here,” she said during her speech when officiating at the event.
The sixth edition of the festival included various competitions and community programmes involving Samariang villages, including the Marhaban Zikir Competition, Hafazan (memorisation), Azan (Islamic prayers) , Khat Writing, Arranging the Jawi Alphabet, Stories of the Prophets, and many more.
Sharifah Hasidah, who is also Samariang assemblywoman, said the state government was currently working on legislation related to ‘waqf’(Islamic endowment).
“A proper legal framework for ‘waqf’ needs to be established so that it will be easier for people to endow property or assets to mosques or for the benefit of the wider community.
“With such a framework in place, I encourage landowners to dedicate their land for the benefit of their villages as I believe it is a good initiative,” she said.
Sharifah Hasidah said the state government would continue engaging with the village community and landowners to discuss the use of idle land for the development of public facilities and infrastructure of the village for the benefit of the community.
Following that, she encouraged villagers to take advantage of opportunities such as the Free Tertiary Education Scheme (FTES), which provided allowances for eligible Sarawakians pursuing their first bachelor’s degree at state-owned universities.
“Beginning this year, students can benefit from free tertiary education, giving them the opportunity to build a brighter future.
“So students should study hard and pursue their higher education at Sarawak-owned universities,” she added.
