Statewide Chinese essay competition is back
KOTA KINABALU: The statewide Chinese essay competition organized by the Confederation of Chinese Communities Associations of Sabah and Labuan is back again this year.
The competition will be held simultaneously in Kota Kinabalu, Sandakan, Tawau, Lahad Datu, Keningau, Tenom, Kudat and Labuan on March 18, from 8am to noon.
The Education Bureau of Sze Yi Association West Coast, Sabah has been appointed as the co-organizer of the competition for Kota Kinabalu Zone that will be held at Sabah Tshung Tsin Secondary School Hall.
The essay competition here will be officiated by the Confederation of Chinese Communities Associations of Sabah and Labuan vice president Datuk Susan Wong Siew Guen, who is also the president of Sze Yi Association West Coast, Sabah.
President of The Confederation of Chinese Communities Associations of Sabah and Labuan Datuk Seri Panglima Edward Khoo Keok Hai has made it a point to organize the essay competition annually to provide a platform for participants to showcase their writing talents.
The objective of the competition is to elevate the standard of Chinese essay writing and to instil passion in writing among the younger generation.
The competition is divided into lower secondary, higher secondary and open categories.
Fung Mou Poon, head of the Education Bureau of Sze Yi Association West Coast, Sabah, said the statewide Chinese essay competition had entered its fifth year with an increasing number of participation.
He said some 500 participants had signed up for the competition in Kota Kinabalu, and over 1,000 contestants in the whole of Sabah.
On the other hand, Wong and Fung paid a courtesy call on Assistant State Education Director of Chinese School Unit, Tham Yun Fook to seek the department’s recognition of the certificates issued by the essay competition with the aim to encourage students to take part in extracurricular activities.
In its official letter dated March 15, the State Education Department stated that students who participated in the competition would earn extracurricular points.
The organizing committee has also invited Tham as special guest for the competition.
In view of the overwhelming number of participants, the registration time for the competition has been moved forward to 7.15am. Students are required to wear their respective school uniforms while participants of the open category should don smart attire.
Participants are also reminded to bring along their own black ballpoint pen.
Following is the programme for the competition on March 18: 7.00am: Arrival of working committee 7.15am: Registration of participants 7.50am: Arrival of invited guests 8.00am: Speech by The Confederation of Chinese Communities Associations of Sabah and Labuan vice president Datuk Susan Wong, speech by Assistant State Education Director of Chinese School Unit, Tham Yun Fook, opening ceremony followed by commencement of the competition.
12 noon: Submission of essays by participants