RURAL AREAS BADLY NEGLECTED

DURING the visit by Sabah DAP interior Mobile service lead by Parliamentary Interior Liaison Chief, Dr. Benjamin Yapp at the Tenom Parliamentary Constituency and the State Constituencies of Melalap and Kemabong, he received numerous public complaints relating to their socio-economic problems.

They told Sabah DAP that the Government had not made any effort to eradicate the poverty problems of the rural communities, particular the hard-core poor families living in Melalap and Kemabong constituencies.

The rural people complained that the YBs in Tenom, Melalap and Kemabong had grossly neglected the rural communities. The rural folks also complained that their YBs rarely made any visits after the last general election. They felt disappointed that their socio-economic and the basic infrastructure development in these rural areas were badly neglected.

The Government had failed to keep their election promises and as at today there were no piped, clean and treated water supply to the villages. Electricity power supply never reached the areas, the kampong folks had to use kerosene lamps and even lighted oil-lamps during the night time. This lack of proper utilities had been for the past few decades, they said.

There were also land problems facing the rural folks. The rural natives expressed their grievances to Sabah DAP interior that their Native lands (NT lands) were adversely affected by the Government’s decision to impose the 5% property gain tax on the rural poor natives in Sabah.

As the rural folks had no money to develop their Native lands, they had no choice but to sell a portion of their Lands or, enter into a joint-venture project in order to raise money to develop into agro-based projects to improve their standard of living, but instead, the present Government taxed 5% from the value of their native lands!

The rural natives were already affected by poverty problems, and instead of charging 5% tax, they deserved their rights to use the money for their own domestic house-hold expenses, savings for their children education and their welfare as well as old age. The rural natives were saddened by the Government’s irrational policy that created worse social and poverty problems among the rural folks.

In this connection, the natives in the interior appealed to the Government through Sabah DAP to abolish such unreasonable, unfair policy of the Government that did not promote socio-economic development for the rural natives who already were living in poverty, especially in Melalap and Kemabong, Tenom.

Sabah DAP urged the Government to listen to the plights of the rural people, and act fairly and compassionately to protect and preserve their native customary rights and freedom of individual choices, instead of creating more hardships to the rural communities.

Deputy Chief Minister of Sabah, YB Tan Sri Pairin Kitingan had declared in the local newspaper of zero poverty by 2010. The people of Sabah will be very anxious to see how Pairin achieve his vision!