By DayakDaily Team
SPAOH, Aug 11: Land that has long remained idle in Ulu Paku in Spaoh and Ulu Rimbas in Debak is being eyed for development as a potential new source of income for its owners.
In a TVS news report, Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas said that large areas of NCR land remained undeveloped despite their potential to generate income for their owners.
He said the development, including oil palm cultivation, could help boost the local economy while improving the well-being of the communities.
“This dialogue is a plan between the member of Parliament (MP) and me here because we see that a lot of Native Customary Rights (NCR) land has yet to be developed to contribute to our own economy.
“All we have on our land now are monkeys that cause us problems. Plant corn, the monkeys eat it; plant vegetables, the monkeys eat them. So, the Sarawak government’s policy is very clear on efforts to improve our economy,” he said at the NCR Land Development Dialogue for the Ulu Paku in Spaoh and Ulu Rimbas in Debak areas in the Betong Division today.
He said NCR land development should be viewed as a way to utilise land with economic potential and turn it into a source of income for landowners.
At the same time, he also stressed that the development projects did not mean the government would take away the community’s NCR land rights as NCR land ownership is protected under Section 6 of the Sarawak Land Code.
Under the provision, the Sarawak government could carry out surveys and gazette the land as a native communal (agriculture) reserve
Uggah said the measure aimed to recognise ownership and safeguard the land from encroachment without depriving the people of their rights.
Once the survey under Section 6 is completed, individual owners within the area may apply for a detailed survey to obtain individual titles under Section 18 of the Sarawak Land Code. — DayakDaily
