By Karen Bong
KUCHING, April 13: Darul Hana Development project has become a state reference point for ultra-modern housing enriched with traditional values because the state government was not only proposing solutions for problems faced by old Malay villages but also seeking to protect the Malay community cultural heritage.
Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg pointed out that Darul Hana was a structured core urban renewal plan for old Malay villages, especially the 12 villages from Kampung Boyan up to Kampung Bintawa Hilir along Sungai Sarawak.
“It is a major development to be implemented in stages. The first phase of the project started with the building of the Darul Hana Mosque. Now, the construction of the houses is in progress,” he said at the inaugural Darul Hana Carnival held at the Darul Hana Mosque compound here today.
Abang Johari shared that ever since the project started in 2011, the housing concept of Darul Hana had become a major trend and a model project for housing developments in the state.
“There have been requests to adopt this approach in housing development from Kemunyang in Sibu and proposal to open up Jepak in Bintulu.
“I am confident with a masterplan, we can modernise traditional Malay villages in Sarawak. This is a long term plan and adjustments will be made as we go along to meet expanding need of the people,” he said.
Other developments to complete Darul Hana include a RM8.6 million Islamic Garden surrounding the Darul Hana Mosque and a RM3 million Darul Hana heritage museum, which would be built after the completion of the housing project.
The museum will host artefacts and historical information pertaining to the locality from its inception to the present day.
“It will also be completed with digital infrastructure, including 5G network, as we aspire to make Darul Hana a smart city,” he elaborated.
With this kind of ongoing development benefiting the people of Sarawak, Abang Johari called on the people to protect and safeguard Sarawak’s unity as the strength to go forward.
“Remember, only Sarawakians know how to develop Sarawak because only we know what we want and how to do it in respect of traditions, culture, and values we practise. As such, Sarawak must be governed by Sarawakians,” he said.
As such, he added that every step taken must be carefully thought through and with planning.
“From experience, and even when we are fighting for our struggles, we cannot rush or be impulsive because a mistake and a bad choice can result in huge negative consequences that will not only affect us but our children and future generation,” he stressed.
The Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS)-led state government, he assured, would continue to carry out its responsibilities and duties, albeit carefully, and through looking at new approaches to develop Sarawak in the Federation of Malaysia.
Assistant Minister of Rural Electricity Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi, State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Speaker Datuk Amar Mohamad Asfia Awang Nassar and Assistant Minister of Law, State-Federal Relations and Project Monitoring Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali were present. — DayakDaily
