THE PENANG INTERNATIONAL DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL 2022
SPEECH BY THE CHIEF MINISTER OF PENANG YAB TUAN CHOW KON YEOW FOR THE PENANG INTERNATIONAL DRAGON BOAT FESTIVAL 2022
27 November 2022
Teluk Bahang Dam
Tuan Yang Terutama Tun Dato’ Seri Utama Ahmad Fuzi Bin Haji Abdul Razak
Yang Di-Pertua Negeri Pulau Pinang
Yang Amat Berbahagia Toh Puan Dato’ Seri Utama Khadijah Binti Mohd Nor
YB Yeoh Soon Hin
Ahli Mesyuarat Kerajaan Negeri Pulau Pinang untuk Pelancongan dan Ekonomi Kreatif
(Penang State Executive Councillor for Tourism & Creative Economy)
YB Zolkifly Bin Md Lazim
Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri Kawasan Teluk Bahang
(State Assemblyman for Teluk Bahang)
Ketua-ketua Jabatan
(Heads of Departments)
Wakil-wakil Agensi
(Representatives of Agencies)
Ahli-ahli Pasukan Perahu Naga
(Members of the Dragon Boat Teams)
Rakan-rakan Media
(Members of the Media)
Tuan-tuan dan Puan-puan
(Ladies & Gentlemen)
A very warm welcome to all the local and international participants and the Dragon Boat Festival community. It is a pleasure to join all of you here this afternoon at Teluk Bahang Dam. I am delighted that one of our most popular celebrations and traditions, the Dragon Boat Festival, is making its grand return to Penang this year.
Since the restrictions caused by Covid-19 have been lifted, I have always looked forward to the resumption of this traditional celebration.
I would also like to take the opportunity to congratulate the committee members of the Penang International Dragon Boat Festival and PETACE office for making this event not only possible today but also a great success, and the same goes to all the volunteers and participating teams.
Today, we have 45 dragon boat teams from nine different countries that took part in this competition, thus transforming it into a modern and international sport. Dragon Boat racing is a perfect showcase of Penang’s rich and vibrant cultural heritage. The core values of the Dragon Boat Festival guide everyone to uphold patriotism, dedication and integrity.
Such values, I believe, are most fundamental for any society to progress and to develop in a way that the common people could reap the benefits of a vibrant economy in a country under good governance. They strengthen the bonds of our community and help to establish a harmonious relationship among the people despite our differences.
For our foreign friends who are here for the festival, don’t miss out on this opportunity to sample our local street food and make the most out of your stay in Penang by go sight-seeing. Just ask around or google, and you will know Penang is the paradise for food lovers. If you haven’t sampled any of our famous dishes or street food, you haven’t been to Penang.
You can also spend a few days visiting our tourist spots here. Go visit Penang Hill to enjoy the cool breeze in the morning, enjoy our sandy beaches along Batu Feringghi, visit the nearby ESCAPE theme park and ENTOPIA by Penang Butterfly Farm. Explore around Penang and you will soon find yourself reluctant to leave!
Ladies & Gentlemen,
What we have had here today is really an amazing opportunity for building long-lasting friendships and experiencing the diversity of culture. If you look around here, you can see people from all walks of life who came here to be part of this event.
For this reason, the Penang State Government is proud to be able to bring everyone together, to organise and to support this event throughout the years.
For some of us here who are only spectators but have never personally participated in the race, the Dragon Boat Race can only be done if all rowers on the same boat were to paddle together in coherence rather than to paddle at different speeds because, in this race, it is not about how fast the individuals of the team are paddling. It is always about how well they row together as a team.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Dragon Boat Festival, in some ways, can also be regarded as a traditional medical and health festival. It is traditionally a festival to protect the people from disease and sickness. As such, it’s actually quite befitting in a way, that all of us are working towards the state’s economic recovery and to promote our healing both physically and mentally after the Covid-19 pandemic.
On a final note, I wish everyone here peace and health for the Dragon Boat Festival.
Thank you!