By Dayak Daily Team
KUCHING, Dec 10: Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas has urged those seeking grants from the Unit for Other Religions (Unifor) to avoid inflating the costs of their houses of worship.
He recounted a case where a group initially requested a RM1 million grant but later returned to request an additional RM2 million.
“We approved the initial request, but three months later, they came back asking for another RM2 million. I was puzzled by the rapid change in their plans,” Uggah, who oversees Unifor, said in a statement today.
He made these remarks after presenting 41 cheques totaling RM8.776 million to 20 Members of Parliament (MPs), State elected representatives, or their representatives in a brief ceremony held at Wisma Bapa Malaysia.
Recipients of Unifor grants are also urged to submit detailed reports on the usage of the funds.
So far, Uggah disclosed that 34 houses of worship and religious organisations have yet to submit reports from a total of 594 projects.
He called on elected representatives to assist Unifor in verifying all funding requests and ensuring that construction or rehabilitation projects were carried out and completed as scheduled.
For 2024, Uggah revealed that Unifor had approved RM90 million for the construction or rehabilitation of 242 houses of worship, with an additional RM20 million allocated for the maintenance of 120 mission schools.
The event was also attended by Minister of Utility and Telecommunication Dato Sri Julaihi Narawi, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry, and Performing Arts Datuk Snowdan Lawan, and Deputy Minister of Women, Childhood, and Community Wellbeing Development Datuk Rosey Yunos. — DayakDaily
