BETONG, March 1: Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah reminded Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) to not play to the gallery by making promises it cannot keep later.
Uggah in a press statement drew attention to the party suggesting it would review or change the Land Code on Native Customary Right (NCR) land should it came to power after the coming state election.
“But changing or reviewing the State Land Code over Native Customary Rights (NCR) land as suggested by its youth chief recently is not something easily done or to be taken lightly,” Uggah opined after the launching ceremony for Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) Bukit Saban, at Rh Simon Bonifis in Babu and Rh Ambu in Suri Tengah yesterday.
Uggah also opined that such a suggestion was only an attempt to instigate NCR land owners and to woo them over.
“As the Minister of Modernisation of Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development, I am indeed perplexed by his suggestion.
“We have done the necessary amendment which obviously benefits and have been accepted by a greater majority of the owners.”
He highlighted that the amendment process had been done with long, meticulous and detailed consultations and brain-storming with various experts, intellectuals and leaders from the community itself.
“What is there to amend now? The opposition were in active mode now coming up with their theories and policies purportedly to help the rural Dayak community.
“Their criticisms of us in the GPS (Gabungan Parti Sarawak) government are also coming in abundance obviously in view of the coming state election,” he added.
At the same time, Uggah noted that the state government had allocated a sum of RM40 million to carry out surveys of NCR land under Section 18 this year.
He said these surveys to issue titles for individual lots, would only be for land that had been surveyed under Section 6.
Uggah stressed the Section 6 survey was only to differenciate between NCR and state land and was not an attempt to rob landowners. — DayakDaily
