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KUCHING, July 5: The Sarawak government must be fully transparent and explain the rationale to spend millions in public funds to build a new Astana Negeri building which would serve as the official residence for the Head of State.
The transparency should include disclosing the cost of the whole project, the company being awarded the project and whether the awarding process was an open tender.
“On top of that, they should also reveal comparison if it will be more cost-efficient to repair and upgrade the existing Astana building which in my view carries much more history and should be retained as the official residence for the Head of State to preserve its heritage,” said Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii in a statement.
Dr Yii said, in most cases, official residences such as the Astana, are mainly used for official purposes including hosting heads of state and VVIPs for official State functions. It is rarely used as main residence as each head of state will have their own residence.
Meanwhile, on the existing Astana being converted into a museum, he said he was not against having museums but he believed that “the value of the museum is not the building itself but the exhibits” which can be kept at the current Astana or other existing museums.
“If the State government can be transparent and justify properly the need for such project, I believe the people of Sarawak may even support if it is really good for Sarawak.
“If not, I strongly believe that there are other important priorities and needs in Sarawak especially when it comes to basic infrastructures and utilities.
“Even if we have extra revenue or resources, it does not give us an excuse to spend it excessively as it may have long -term repercussions on all Sarawakians,” said Dr Yii. — DayakDaily
