KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysia Day celebration today brought this year's National Month to a close with various meaningful activities by Malaysians from all walks of life.

This is the second year Malaysia celebrated its National Day and Malaysia Day in new norms following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Checks by Bernama on social media found that since the National Month was launched on Aug 7, Malaysians, including school children, took the opportunity to express their love for the country in their own unique way under the new norms with strict adherence to standard operating procedures (SOPs) prescribed to curb the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Students and teachers of Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Seksyen 24 Shah Alam, Selangor, came together online to celebrate the National Day on Aug 31 via the school's YouTube channel and went live once again this morning in conjunction with the Malaysia Day celebration.

Among the activities held were a virtual choir performance, a chit chat session and a traditional costume competition.

The school's co-curriculum unit went all out in promoting today's event by producing and uploading a teaser in its efforts to attract public interest.

"On Aug 31, the students were so excited to perform a countdown where they got to shout 'Merdeka' three times on top of their lungs," the school's headmaster Azman Mohd Aris told Bernama recently.

Azman said the activities organised by the school in conjunction with the National Month received encouraging responses from the public from all races, adding that he hoped it could instil the spirit of nationalism among the young generation.

The school's senior assistant for co-curriculum, Zuhana Abdul Samad said that she hoped the school's efforts would inspire Malaysians especially the students to feel more love and affection towards the country as well as motivate them to appreciate the true meaning of independence.

SK SS 19 Subang Jaya senior assistant for co-curriculum Nazaruha Sungip said school staff still made efforts to enliven the National Month celebration under the new norms as they wanted to cultivate patriotic spirit among students.

She said the school hosted various activities including a piano performance of a popular patriotic song 'Sejahtera Merdeka' by its music teacher that was uploaded on YouTube, which caught the attention of many viewers.

She also said the school wanted to ensure that the National Month celebration did not go by without meaningful activities as it was a chance to instil the patriotic spirit among the students, adding that the restrictions imposed during this pandemic were not an obstacle to celebrate it together.

Meanwhile, Nur Hidayah Hasbi expressed her excitement when her son Uqael Mohd Affizin, 6, from Tadika KEMAS Kg Jawa, Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan was announced the winner of the virtual poetry recitation competition and went on to represent Port Dickson at the state level.

"We really did not expect to win, we hope this will encourage children to embrace the spirit of patriotism," said the 31-year-old mother in a post on her Facebook account.

-- BERNAMA