PM VISITING POOR AREAS IN SABAH: KADAZANDUSUNS SHOULD SEE HIM

PM VISITING POOR AREAS IN SABAH:

KADAZANDUSUNS SHOULD SEE HIM

By

Allan Dumbong

Following is the news extract from BERNAMA regarding our beloved and concerned PM visiting some of the poor areas in Sabah. It is indeed high time, as Sabahans are still lagging behind economically as compared to their counterparts in Peninsula Malaysia. The Vision 2020 is only 15 years away, but the indigenous people (including the majority Kadazandusuns)' equity ownership is less than 1%, when the target is NOT LESS THAN 30% by 2020.

The 9th Malaysia Plan should be a roadmap for the Kadazandusuns to improve their economic being, and acquire a reasonable percentage of equity ownership. The Kadazandusuns must take a cue from the PM's visit, and take the necessary steps to be counted in the process of building the Malaysian Nation.

If the PM is concern and the Malaysian Administrative machinery is equally concern about the plights of the poors in Sabah and the low economic participation of the indigenous people of Sabah, and if the Kadazandusun themselves are prepare to sweat blood and tears, then there is no reason why they cannot be at par with the the other Bumiputeras in Peninsula Malaysia.

Congratulations YAB PM! See for yourself the real situation of the indigenous people of Sabah. Be sympthetic to them, and make sure the government servants implement the National Development Policy efficiently, effectively and fairly.

June 07, 2006 15:40 PM

PM To Visit Poorest Area In Sabah On Friday
PITAS, June 7 (Bernama) -- The Prime Minister, who will be in Sabah for a two-day visit tomorrow, is scheduled to go to Pitas in the northern part of the state on Friday to look at conditions in one of the poorest areas in Sabah.The helicopter ferrying Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi is expected to land in an open space in the Bengkoka peninsula, near here about 9 am.What is significant about Pitas is that the state government, with assistance from the federal government, has launched a project to plant rubber on an area extending more than 2,000 hectares to eradicate poverty among the thousands of settlers, particularly the Rungus ethnic group in the remote area.The first phase of the project, which was implemented by the Sabah Rubber Industry Board (SRIB), is part of the agency's proposal to develop 10,000 hectares of fertile idle land in the district.SRIB general manager Datuk Harris Matthew said that upon full completion, the project would generate good income for about 2,500 poor families in 90 villages in Pitas district."Each participant in the project will be given subsidy to plant rubber on a four-hectare plot with income projected at between RM1,000 and RM3,000 per month when the rubber trees reach maturity," he told Bernama.-- BERNAMA