‘Bekwoh’ Highlight of Malaysian Family Tour Kelantan Edition

KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 (Bernama) – The three-day Kelantan edition of the Malaysian Family Aspirations (AKM) tour starting today is set to highlight the local tradition of bekwoh which, essentially, is a grand feast that is held to foster close ties between the people and their leaders.

Said to be derived from the English words ‘big work’ and pronounced bekwoh in the Kelantanese dialect, the feast will feature most of the state’s traditional delicacies and will take place tomorrow at Kompleks Yayasan Kemiskinan Kelantan (YKK), Peringat, Kota Bharu. The feast will certainly be among the unique attractions of this particular AKM tour, the main goal of which is to bring the government closer to the people.

As with other Malaysian states that have their own famous cuisines to satisfy taste buds, Kelantan too has its own share of traditional offerings that have succeeded in uniting the community.

 

Each time a feast or, in this case, bekwoh is organised, it is usual for large groups of people to turn up to lend a helping hand in the spirit of gotong-royong.  

Not surprisingly, a bekwoh is usually on the agenda whenever Kelantanese working and residing in other parts of the country return home for a holiday as such a feast provides them with the perfect opportunity to bond with their families.  

In the Kelantan edition of the AKM Tour, the bekwoh has been included in the calendar of events and the Malaysian Family bekwoh event slated for tomorrow will enable the people to enjoy a variety of local favourites with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

Communications and Multimedia Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa and state leaders are also expected to attend the event.

According to Kelantan Information Department director Muhd Nor Aswadi Md Nor, the bekwoh activity will begin at 7 am tomorrow. About 100 locals are expected to be involved in preparing the feast, which also includes cooking meat in a huge wok.

“Starting early in the morning, people from nearby villages will get together in the spirit of gotong-royong to prepare various special dishes. A cow will be slaughtered and the meat cooked in a (huge) wok will be among the specialities the people will serve to the federal and state leaders,” he said when contacted by Bernama.

Muhd Nor Aswadi said the bekwoh event is a special and significant part of the AKM Kelantan tour as it will help to strengthen ties among the community and revive a culture that is fast being forgotten.

“Apart from that, we expect this event to bring the top leaders closer to the locals,” he said, adding that over 50,000 people are expected to visit the three-day AKM Tour at the Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium in Kota Bharu.

 

The AKM Kelantan tour, themed ‘Malaysian Family, Digital Family’, will also see various departments and agencies setting up booths at the venue to offer their services to the people.

“It’s an important event as the services offered by the government will be brought directly to the people. All the heads of departments and agencies will be present at their respective booth to offer their services, thus reflecting the government’s concern for the people,” added Muhd Nor Aswadi.

Besides bekwoh, various other programmes will also be held during the AKM Kelantan tour. Among them is ‘Bicara Ulama Nusantara’, which will see a well-known scholar from Pattani, Thailand, namely Baba Ghazali Ahmad Al-Fatani, participating in a panel discussion on strengthening Muslim unity.

Other programmes include RIUHxJAKM Kelantan, an artistic performance; K-KOMM@JAKM Digital Carnival; and an international Muay Thai competition.

The Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) has also lined up its own programme, Jom Kenali BERNAMA. This campaign is aimed at promoting the BERNAMA brand as a trusted news source, as well as a source of news for other media organisations.

Sharing her views on the AKM Kelantan tour, Nur Ain Abd Manaf, 27, from Kampung Repek, Pasir Mas, Kelantan, said it will benefit the people as they will be able to buy things at a cheaper price at the bazaar to be held in conjunction with the tour.

“The AKM tour is a good programme because many goods will be sold at reasonable prices. A programme like this also helps to bring the people closer to the government. The people will also get to know the government agencies better and be able to find out what kind of services they offer,” said Nur Ain, who is self-employed.

Private-sector employee Ahmad Faris Abd Halim, 35, from Kota Jembal, Kota Bharu, said the job carnival to be held alongside the AKM tour will be of great help to job seekers.

“Youths in search of jobs must visit the carnival. I was told that at previous AKM tours (in other parts of the country), job offers were made on the spot after the interview sessions,” he said.

The AKM Kelantan tour is the sixth in this year’s series of tours, with the previous ones held in Johor, Perlis, Sabah, Terengganu and Perak. The tours are organised to ensure that people from all levels of society understand the aspirations and spirit behind the Malaysian Family agenda.

 

Translated by Rema Nambiar

 

-- BERNAMA