KUCHING, Aug 1 —  The 'Legacy Square', an area that portrays the image of Kuching City to the world, will be developed in an effort to preserve the identity of the city, said Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud.

He said that according to initial plans, the Legacy Square would be developed starting from the Sarawak Golf Club, Petrajaya to the Dewan Suarah Kuching, Jalan Taman Budaya.

"We have planned the development of 'Legacy Square' very well. We hope to put within huge square miles an introduction to the kind of people we are by our buildings, town, charming old-fashioned shops and also the historical buildings around us that pictured our history and the new ones that described our success," he said.

Abdul Taib said this in his speech at the launching of the 25th anniversary of Kuching City at Stadium Perpaduan, Petra Jaya, today. Kuching city was declared as a city on Aug 1, 1988.

The administration of Kuching is divided into two local authorities with two mayors where North Kuching is administered by the Dewan Bandaraya Kuching Utara (DBKU), while South Kuching is administered by Majlis Bandaraya Kuching Selatan (MBKS).

Also present were Datuk Bandar Kuching Utara Datuk Abang Abdul Wahap Abang Julai and Datuk Bandar Kuching Selatan Datuk James Chan Khay Syn.

Commenting further, Abdul Taib said as part of the plan, the state government had agreed to build a new museum costing RM100 million, which would also give a picture and preserve the identity of Kuching City.

"The government of Sarawak has taken a decision in order to remind us of the characteristics of our people, we would like to see the new museum to emphasize on the development of our people, culturally as well as socially, economically, and politically.

"We have decided to put aside RM100 million for this development, the museum will be the main introduction to anybody who visits Kuching to see how the people of this city put up the efforts to preserve the best they have," he said.

In addition, Abdul Taib said, it was also hoped that the museum could instil the spirit of solidarity already forged between the various ethnic groups in the city.

"This museum also encourages our own people how to maintain harmony and provides an inspiration to build the future of a bright city and more beautiful city. I hope this legacy square will be our guidance to make Kuching better known to the world," he said.

Meanwhile, when met after the function, Abdul Taib said the new museum would be built at the site of the Dewan Tun Abdul Razak, Muzium Sarawak.

"The new museum hall will be at Tun Razak Hall. We are now working on a new architecture that symbolizes the new Kuching, that is harmonious with the surrounding areas," he said.

Abdul Taib said the new museum would be another attraction to Kuching City besides the State Legislative Assembly building facing the Kuching Waterfront.

"The most beautiful part of Kuching in the future is Kuching Waterfront. The river itself reflects our background which depended on the river and also tell that Kuching is a city that can link two banks at one time, and that is not an easy thing," he added. — Bernama