SERIAN: The state government will source for more funds for the construction of more roads in the rural areas of Sarawak, said Infrastructure Development and Communications Minister Dato Sri Michael Manyin Jawong.
Manyin (middle) cuts the ribbon to launch the new bridge and access road.
He revealed that Chief Minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Adenan Satem had told him during the Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) meeting on Sunday morning, that more rural roads are needed to accelerate rural development and to further narrow the rural-urban gap.
“All the PBB ministers and elected representatives were at the meeting. He spoke to all of us, and he specifically told me – ‘Michael, our focus is now on rural development and therefore we need to seek more funds to build more roads in the rural areas’.
“He also told all of us in the meeting that in the coming years, Sarawak government must work on narrowing the development gap between the rural and urban areas, because we are still lagging behind in infrastructure development and the rural-urban divide is still very wide,” he said.
Manyin, who is also Tebedu assemblyman, mentioned these during the ‘Leader-Meet-The-People’ session at Kampung Lanchang Sijo near here on Sunday night.
He went on to say that the chief minister has a vision that with good road connectivity, rural areas will be developed and the rural folks in Sarawak can enjoy good infrastructure just like their urban counterparts.
“Ask your children who had been overseas either London or New York, they would say what is found there can also be found in Kuala Lumpur which gives impression that Malaysia is already developed.
“If you go outside London, what is found in the city can be found also in the rural areas. But what you can find in Kuala Lumpur, you don’t find in Serian – there are good roads there, but not here,” he said.
On another note, Manyin advised the Bidayuh community to be ready to embrace changes brought by development into their areas.
He advised Bidayuh parents to encourage their children to do well in their studies, or to enrol them for skills certification, so that once they have graduated they can participate in opportunities created by development instead of being mere spectators.
“I also hope those Bidayuh who are already successful in their respective fields do not forget their kampung but help their kampung and fellow kampung folks,” he added.
He also called on the Bidayuh community, being a small community of just over 200,000 people, to remain politically united so that they can move forward.
Even Bidayuh intellectuals, he cautioned, would agree that there would be a split in the community if another party were to win a Bidayuh-majority seat.
“If ‘Party A’ wins one or two seats, but the other Bidayuh-majority seats are won by ‘Party B’, it is hard for the Bidayuh community to speak in one voice and one heart. Therefore, it is better that all Bidayuh seats are under one party,” he said.
Also present at the function were Serian district officer Sinde Muling, Serian District Council deputy chairman Dr Simon Sindang Bada, former state minister Nelson Kundai Ngareng and community leaders.
Prior to the function, Manyin officiated at the launch of a new bridge and access road and declared open the Rela and village committee operations centre at neighbouring Kampung Lanchang Sabai.
Read more: http://www.theborneopost.com/2014/08/26/manyin-state-govt-to-seek-more-funds-for-roads-in-rural-areas/#ixzz3BTkkCp9T
