Tengku Ab Aziz and PNB Merdeka Ventures head of communications Liza Karim visiting the showcase featuring clips and photos of the Declaration of Independence as well as an interactive 360-degree virtual tour of Stadium Merdeka at the Peszta festival held at Merdeka 118 precinct in Kuala Lumpur.
A MERDEKA-themed festival called Peszta was held at Merdeka 118 precinct in Kuala Lumpur to shine a spotlight on Malaysia’s rich history as well as its arts, music and cultural heritage.
The festival was organised by PNB Merdeka Ventures Sdn Bhd (PMVSB) in collaboration with Think City, government stakeholders, private sector as well as local artists and communities.
They included the National Department for Culture and Arts, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL), Pentago House, Sam Mansion, Zhongshan Building and Japan Foundation Kuala Lumpur, among others.
The first of its kind, Peszta was also a collaborative effort with several PMVSB’s Merdeka 118 Community Grants Programme recipients, which was launched in June 2021.
“Peszta offers our grant recipients a platform to exhibit their products and showcase their progress as a result of the Merdeka 118 Community Grants Programme.
“A good example of this is the Stingless Beekeeping Programme by International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) with Perumahan Awam Sri Sarawak, as they are able to sell products from the harvest such as honey soap,” said PNB Merdeka Ventures Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Tengku Datuk Ab Aziz Tengku Mahmud.
The activities with participation from the surrounding communities created an air of festivity at the sites.
Among the participants were grant recipients such as Kg Attap Collective, IIUM, Kaki Jelajah Warisan, Sinergi Aspirasi Global and YWCA, along with residents from Sri Sarawak and Hang Tuah public housing.
Tengku Ab Aziz said Peszta was part of the company’s aim to ensure that Merdeka 118 was integrated seamlessly with the surrounding communities.
“By celebrating Merdeka together in this historic location where our independence was proclaimed, we hope to reignite the Merdeka excitement among Malaysians, particularly given PNB’s role as the custodian of Stadium Merdeka.
“This also provides the opportunity to showcase the preservation efforts that have been undertaken by PNB to restore Stadium Merdeka to its former state,” he said.
Another interesting feature at the festival was an audio exhibition titled “Wasteland of Malaysian Poetry in English” at Pentago House.
It showcased a continuous tradition of poetry in English predating independence, using original never-before-heard recordings of historical and contemporary poets that reverberated throughout a renovated Chinese shophouse.
An interactive exhibition on Stadium Merdeka was set up at the Zhongshan Building annexe to enable visitors to learn more about the historical landmark.
The showcase featured clips and photos of Independence Day as well as an interactive 360-degree virtual tour of Stadium Merdeka and the restoration efforts.
This included a Merdeka 118 exhibition for visitors to learn more about the development of the Merdeka 118 precinct.
Tengku Ab Aziz said Stadium Merdeka was undergoing maintenance and preservation works and would be fully activated in the later part of 2023.
“We hope to bring a combination of sports, heritage, food and lifestyle activities to bring people back to Stadium Merdeka.
“PNB had collaborated with Badan Warisan Malaysia and National Heritage Department in 2008 to restore Stadium Merdeka back to how it was in 1957 without compromising its conservation and retaining its authenticity,” he said.
Rather than being an island on its own, Tengku Ab Aziz said they wanted to engage with the surrounding community within the Merdeka 118 precinct to benefit everyone.
“We are already seeing positive spillover effects.
“There will be more than 10,000 people working here in the next couple of years and the positive effects on the businesses within the communities here will be felt, subsequently creating a more vibrant place,” he added.
