Peter (third left) presents a token to the ailing national hero while other exco members look on.
KUCHING: One of the very few remaining surviving national heroes, Awang Raweng, has called on all Malaysians especially the young ones to give the best they can to preserve peace and harmony in the country in conjunction with National Day celebration tomorrow.
Awang, 86, the nation’s only George Cross recipient, was warded at the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) since last Monday for stomach pain but even in that situation he was still in very jovial mood.
He was apparently both happy and proud that the country’s sovereignty that he and many others have fought for still stayed until this day, saying the hard-fought peace should never be destroyed.
With a smile on his face the soft spoken ex-Iban Tracker said: “My hope is that what we have achieved through our efforts in the early days will be preserved till the end. It wasn’t easy and therefore my advice to all Malaysians is that we should remain united and continue to work together as one family.”
He said disunity and disharmony should be avoided at all cost as it would not do anyone any good but instead could be disastrous for the society and country.
“So once again my humble advice to all Malaysians in conjunction with this year’s National Day celebration is to stay united and have high respect for one another.”
He told reporters this from his hospital bed after receiving a visit by a delegation from the Veterans Association of Malaysian Armed Forces (PVATM) Sarawak led by the advisor Major (rtd) Peter Runin yesterday.
Speaking to the media after the visit, Peter said visiting ailing veterans was their normal routine to show their concern and care for the less fortunate members.
“Today (yesterday) we take the time off to visit one of our greatest heroes, Awang Raweng, at the hospital. We are glad to hear that his situation has improved and we are hoping that he will be able to recover soon because on Sept 20 he is supposed to be in England
to have an audience with the Queen.
“We are unsure whether he can go or not but we were made to understand that the British High Commissioner to Malaysia will be visiting him on Monday to check whether he is fit to travel or not,” he said.
Peter, who is a political secretary to the prime minister, said the good news was that Awang had shown tremendous improvement since he was admitted.
This was supported by his grandson Tony Mat who has been with him at the hospital since day one.
Tony, 24, said his grandfather had improved a lot compared with the first time he complained of stomach pain.
“We sent him to Sri Aman Hospital last Monday four days after he complained of being unwell and vomited after each meal. On the fourth day he could not even get up or walk by himself. Now he is returning to his normal self.
“He can go to the washroom by himself but just as a precaution I have to hold and guide him, just in case,” Tony said.
State Veteran Affairs Department director Lt Col Monday Juhid, state PVATM chairman Spencer Birai, treasurer Captain Mohd Henderi Hashim and other executive committee members were among those in the visiting delegation yesterday.