KUCHING, Dec 14: Democratic Action Party (DAP) candidate for N12 Kota Sentosa, Michael Kong Feng Nian believes that he has a fair chance of winning the seat in the 12th Sarawak Election.
He explained that he has been actively going on the ground to serve the people since his appointment as a special assistant to Sarawak DAP chairman and Kota Sentosa incumbent Chong Chieng Jen in January 2020. Chong will be contesting in N9 Padungan
Among Kong’s contributions which he highlighted were organising the distribution of MyTV television decoders to the general public at Aeroville Mall and Emart Batu Kawa in February 2020, getting involved in the distribution of food aid during the Covid-19 lockdowns and assisting constituents to apply for financial assistance under the Bantuan Khas Sarawakku Sayang (BKSS) initiative.
“Therefore with my constant groundwork and engagement with the local community, I believe that the people will see me as a person who is sincere and looks at the long-term goal.
“I am confident that my active groundwork has removed me from the list of ‘politicians who only come out from their hiding during the election period’,” he said in a statement today.
At the same time, the 35-year-old lawyer by profession aimed to push for education autonomy and proper basic infrastructure if elected.
He said many young children in Kota Sentosa do not have the opportunity to go to school.
“Anyone strolling at places like Stampin Resettlement Scheme will see young children running around and loitering in the public parks instead of attending school or tuition class.
“It is for us as leaders to try to guide the young generation so they can be independent and avoid any of the mistakes that we or our forefathers have made.
“With better education, everyone will play a more prominent role in the community resulting in a collective change of people’s mindsets with regards to the use of plastic straws, open fire burning, littering, etc,” he pointed out.
Kong also highlighted that the Kota Sentosa constituency is still struggling with drainage issues, asserting that local councils namely Kuching South City Council (MBKS) and Padawan Municipal Council (MPP) have failed to deal with drainage problems in Jalan Durian Burung, Stampin Resettlement Scheme and Jalan Stakan.
“MPP chairman Lo Khere Chiang had also made a public plea to the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) State government for more funds to improve all the dilapidated drains in its jurisdiction.
“This plea confirms my consistent stance that GPS has constantly disregarded the basic needs of the people, which has left the people begging for proper basic infrastructure. I want to be able to find ways to resolve these long-outstanding issues for the people of Kota Sentosa,” he added.
As for Kota Sentosa’s potential which can be explored, Kong said the constituency has many vibrant commercial centres like Premier 101, Gala City and Saradise.
“With Kota Sentosa’s commercial centres being meeting places for many people, I hope to be able to tap into this by promoting more community-based events and also to promote our local businesses.
“I know that with such activities, we can create a closer-knit community where people will congregate in Kota Sentosa and grow the local economy here,” he pointed out.
He also declared that he would focus on empowering youths through on-the-ground programmes which give them opportunities to participate and contribute to policy-making, ensuring a fair distribution of infrastructure development regardless of party affiliation and improving public transport network planning to address traffic congestion. — DayakDaily
