News from Batang Ai (Part 7)

The daily update of news

from Batang Ai by-election
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1. Rumah Beranda remains isolated

Rumah Beranda Aluk, Nanga Bengap which is about 15 km from the main road is little known longhouse as no VVIPs has ever visited it. Except for Jawah Gerang who visited the longhouse three times already and the late Dublin Unting visited the longhouse once only during his years as YB.

Only three days ago Mong Dagang, PRS youth chief, visited the longhouse. He represented the PRS president James Masing and promised a grant of RM5,000 to the longhouse.

Tuai Rumah Beranda and his “anembiaks” were happy to see a BN man visiting them especially during election times, as he wanted to tell them of their problems that have been harassing them.

Among others the problems are:-

(a) most of them are poor and the government should look after their welfare;

(b) they need plots of land for agriculture as most of the land surrounding them have been taken by Salcra;

(c) their road conditions are terrible and for the last 27 years they have been asking for the road to be tar-sealed; and

(d) they request for RM70,000 to repair their old longhouse.

Other Tuai Rumah should emulate Tuai Rumah Beranda and tell BN of their problems as this is the ONLY time that instant “noodle” projects will be promised.

Unfortunately, a junior official of BN was sent to the longhouse, the one who has no power. A minister in the likes of Joseph Entulu should have visited the longhouse.


2. RM2 million for longhouses in Batang Ai

Some RM2 million has been approved for the upgrading of longhouses in Batang Ai, said deputy rural and regional development minister, Joseph Entulu Belaun.

He said each “bilik” (door) of the identified longhouses would soon receive RM300 to RM1,000 for repairing walls and roofs and kitchen extension.

“The allocations are not carrots or for the purpose of fishing for votes because development in rural areas is ongoing,” he said, when he campaigned for Mussen at Rumah Jarop Kalang, Changkol.

Do you believe what he says?


3. Dayaks do not need PKR to resort to Dayakism

Barisan Nasional youth director of operations Mong Dagang for the by-election says that he is aware of PKR trying to fan the spirit of Dayakism to instigate people turning their backs on the BN government.

“With PKR being a peninsula-based party, it is not right for PKR to resort to Dayakism when their own leaders and the party itself practise multiracialism. The Dayaks in Sarawak do not need PKR as their platform because there are already many Dayak-elected representatives in the four BN components.

“In BN, we have a lot of Dayak-elected representatives albeit in the four components. Thus we don’t need PKR to champion the rights of the Dayaks,” he said.

What Mong says is true that we have a lot of Dayak-elected representatives. But what is the use if these Dayak-elected representatives have never raised issues such as NCR land issues that are affecting the livelihood of the Dayaks.

Why? Simply because they are scared of Abdul Taib Mahmud. This everyone knows. Even when PRS submitted a memorandum on NCR land to the PM last year, PRS was told off by Taib. So what has happened to the MoU on NCR land?

Secondly, why Dayaks want to use PKR as a platform?

(a) because it has pledged to save Dayak land from being taken away;

(b) because it was Masing who told PM and CM that he strongly opposed the registration of MDC (Malaysian Dayak Congress) (YB Gabriel Adit knows about this as he was present at the meeting); and

(c) because Masing and PRS are the ones responsible for the deregistration of Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) which had stood as a symbol of Dayakism.


4. First public duty of Malcolm Mussen

The BN candidate for Batang Ai by-election Malcolm Mussen’s first public duty is to open the Lubok Antu branch of Sarawak Bumiputra entrepreneurs association on 3 April.

The branch was hurriedly formed last week to time it with the ongoing campaign. This was stated by association president Abang Zaibidin Abang Zainal. The branch headed by Penghulu Lembang Bagong has about 100 members.

It looks like that the association is playing politics. And nobody makes noise. But if Sarawak Dayak National Union (SDNU) or Sarawak Dayak Iban Association (SADIA) or even Sarawak Dayak Graduates Association (SDGA) is to organise such a function during election time, the first to cry foul will be Alfred Jabu. He will surely accuse them of playing politics.


5. CM face defaced

As you enter the Lubok Antu road from the main Kuching/Sibu road, there is a big BN billboard featuring the photographs of Sarawak leaders such as Abdul Taib Mahmud, James Masing, Alfred Jabu, George Chan, William Mawan and the BN candidate Malcolm Mussen. The face of Abdul Taib Mahmud was defaced.

According to PKR, this is the work of PRS members themselves so that the blame will be on PKR. Although Abdul Taib Mahmud has been the target of PKR, we will not resort to such tactic, said a PKR leader. He believes that that was the work of the PRS members themselves.


6. Masing wanted UMNO to come to Sarawak

James Masing has been telling the people of Batang Ai to reject PKR as it is a peninsula-based party. Sarawak should mean for local-based parties and no “outsider” party should be allowed.

According to Gabriel Adit, State assemblyman for Ngemah, it was James Masing who wanted UMNO to come to Sarawak.

Adit recalled that the entire PBDS executive committee members met the top leadership of UMNO including Muhamad Muhamad Taib, Najib Razak and Dr. Mahathir Mohamad soon after the Ming Court crisis.

Masing, Adit said, asked Joseph Entulu, leader of Youth wing of PBDS to tell UMNO leaders to bring the party (UMNO) to Sarawak in order to get rid of Abdul Taib Mahmud whose policies are detrimental to the interests of the Ibans.

In each of these meetings, Entulu repeated the request.

Dr. Mahathir told them that the UMNO should not extend its wing to Sarawak because it might create problems, citing Sabah as an example. He said that it was a mistake for UMNO to come to Sabah as it created many problems. He did not want Sarawak to have such problems.

Today, Masing and Joseph Entulu, according to Adit, not only jealously defended Taib’s policies on NCR land-grabbing, policies that undermine Ibans’ interests and unity, but also went to the extent of “nilat burit Taib” (licking Taib’s ass).

They defended Taib’s family wealth, cronyism, CMS and so on. “These are the qualities of Dayak leaders we have in BN,” Adit said to the applause of the people of Rumah Abeng, Nanga Mepi.

More to come…stay tune to www.thebrokenshield.blogspot.com