By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, Aug 30: The Darul Hana redevelopment model in Kuching must serve as the blueprint for all native land projects to safeguard Malay and Bumiputera ownership, says Sarawak Governor Tun Pehin Sri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar.
He recalled advising the then Chief Minister, the late Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud, in 2008 that the redevelopment should not repeat past mistakes in Jalan Kulas and Jalan Satok in Kuching, where Malay neighbourhoods were sold off and became unaffordable for the community.
According to him, he had urged for a new formula to be adopted, emphasising that Malay enclaves in Kuching must be safeguarded, kampung names preserved and the traditional order of villages such as Boyan, Gersik, Saurabaya, Panglima Seman, Pulo, Semarang and Bintawa maintained even if their positions shifted.
“I proposed a different model—no open-market sales. The government would value the land, build houses to match that value and offer them back to the original owners. If infrastructure was needed for the new community, so be it.
“The objective was simple: to maintain and retain Malay ownership of all the properties there. That’s how Darul Hana became the first truly successful example of native land redevelopment in Sarawak,” he said when delivering his Statesman Lecture titled ‘Understanding Governance through the Lens of Law and History’ at Universiti Teknologi Sarawak (UTS) here today.
Wan Junaidi also made it clear to Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg that the system for housing development in Sarawak must not be changed.
“The Darul Hana model must be made the blueprint for all future native land development. If we don’t learn from the past, we’re doomed to repeat it,” he warned.
On broader governance, Wan Junaidi criticised government officers who fail to understand the laws underpinning their authority, calling it a key reason for policy failures.
Citing the New Economic Policy (NEP), he said its failure lay not in vision but in execution, with the 30 per cent Bumiputera equity target still unmet after six decades.
“Even those trying to assemble IKEA furniture must first read the instruction manual. If wrongly assembled, you end up with a wobbly table or bookshelf.
“But unlike a wobbly bookshelf that collapses in your house, not following the law and failing to understand the history behind it misaligns government policy—affecting not just one, but multitudes of people and the country,” he added.
However, he commended Abang Johari for fulfilling the spirit of the NEP through initiatives such as the Kampung Extension Scheme, the proposed trust body to acquire Malay-owned properties and his commitment to the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63). — DayakDaily
