13 Oct 2011
KUCHING: What has happened to a clinic that was proposed to be built at Kampung Stungkor, Lundu before the 2002 state election? asked Foo Ah Kee, whose land was acquired for the clinic.
“I have no idea whether the government actually has any plan to construct this clinic, but I do know that there is a real and urgent need to cater for the medical needs of the people,” he said.
Another villager, known only as Madam Tapin, spoke of her problems when she got sick and needed to see a doctor during her husband’s absence.
“It is so difficult to look for someone to drive me to the Lundu or Bau hospitals to seek treatment, and it would be much easier if the clinic had been built as it would a walking distance from my house,” said Tapin, who is in her early 60s.
Their sentiments are shared by at least by 5,000 people from nine Bidayuh villages in the locality.
When the proposal to build the clinic was announced just before the state election in 2002, the people applauded it even though they knew it to be one of the election ‘goodies’.
Once completed, it would provide out-patient services, mother and child healthcare services and maternity wards for the villagers and at the same time it would help to reduce the pressure exerted on the accident and emergency (A& E) departments of Bau and Lundu district hospitals.
Now more than nine years later their joy turned into frustration and anger as they felt cheated by the State Barisan Nasional and its elected representatives for failing to fulfil their promises.
“This is another broken promise by the Barisan Nasional,” said Boniface Willy Anak Tumek, a member of Sarawak PKR political bureau.
Willy has been exposing the BN’s unfulfilled promises made during the state and parliamentary elections, and such projects included roads, bridges, water, electricity, rural growth centres (RGC) and land titles to native customary rights (NCR) land.
Checked with the medical department, Willy said that it is confirmed that such a clinic would be constructed under the 9th Malaysia Plan but it is given a low priority by the Ministry of Health.
According to Willy, the villagers are very upset with the way they have been treated for the past nine years.
“How is it that after nine years we are still not considered as deserving of this most basic of public service which every citizen by right is entitled to enjoy?
“Election after election we have proven our loyalty to the BN government and helped to return them to office. It is very upsetting to know that they have placed no value on our support at all.
“This is not the first time that we have been treated shabbily,” complained Tapin’s husband.
Willy said that the villagers are now demanding that the Minister of Health Liow Tiong Lai, the MP for Mas Gading Tiki Lafe, Assistant Minister of Public health Jerip Susil and their Opar assemblyman Ranum Mina to ensure that the clinic be built before the 10th Malaysia Plan expires.
“We would like to remind Ranum that the clinic was promised to us, in part, to persuade the voters to vote for him and elect him to high office.
“And he owes us this clinic,” said Willy, a committee member of PKR Mas Gading division.
4 comments:
The problem is we,especially the Dayaks ,like to entertain or accept promises knowing very well that political promises are as good as no promises.We gained independence in 1963 and after 48 years we still don't know what is political promise?There you are.
Yes one will be built but we do not know when,
A lot of some promises by BN leaders during the elections have not been fulfilled.
During Batang Ai by election, the wait for for land titles to be issued to the participants of Batang Ai resettlement scheme, unpaid compensation to 21 longhouses in the area of hydro dam and an allocation of RM70 million to tar-seal the entire stretch from the main Lubok Antu road into the scheme area.
The work to link RM700 million Kapit to the rest of Sarawak which was supposed to start in 2010.
RM18 million for four resettlement areas in Kanowit, every longhouse of 1,420 re-settlers would get RM12,000 each as promised by PM. Has each longhouse been paid?
All 30 to 50-door longhouse would have a pre-school in line with the proposed modern longhouses development concept in Sarawak as announced by Abdul Wahap Aziz. Can anyone tell where are these longhouses?
RM1 billion worth of projects would be implemented in Batang Lupar parliamentary constituency to improve the livelihood of the people promised by DPM. I have not seen any project being carried out in this area.
I think BN should discard the practice of relying heavily on fund allocation tactic to woo voters. The defeat of a BN candidate in Sibu parliamentary by-election and the defeat most of SUPP candidates during the state general election are good examples, because the urban politic have moved beyond ricebowl issue to complex ideas like justice and good governance. Perhaps rural voters are slowly following the trend.
In malaysia lying by BN politicians is a deep grown culture afterall the big boss who runs putrajaya is no different. Dayaks are just plain "paloi" and forgets easily. Every election follows the same trend with empty promises. When will we ever wake up?
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