Letter to the Editor
The Madani government is consistent in expounding its “madani” value by putting directly some cash into the hands of Malaysians who are struggling to make ends meet amidst the rising cost of living. Thus, there should be happiness all around as the Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim dishes out cash aids in various forms to various categories of people. With the economy expected to perform well in 2026 and to expand by about 4 per cent, the Madani government could well afford the various incentives, cash and in-kind aids to all sectors. It is not even a year. It should nevertheless please many to have something from their government and leadership, who will be viewed as “prihatin” or showing concern for the plight of the ordinary hard-working people.
It is well placed too that the Prime Minister, who himself is not taking his government salary, is pursuing cutting the already high pay of his cabinet ministers. In fact, some elected representatives are taking multiple pay packages for multiple roles, such as lawmakers at state and parliament levels, in addition to being ministers at either the state or federal cabinet. For some lawmakers, this represents double, and for a few, triple appointments that are matched by several pay packages at the same time.
For Sabah and Sarawak, Budget 2026 looks like a winning cause, as both regions are given huge slices of federal spending at RM6.9 billion and RM6 billion each respectively. Both regions are known to be among the three poorest regions in the country. According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia, in 2022, the highest percentage of absolute poverty was in Sabah at 19.7 per cent, followed by Sarawak at 10.8 per cent. Kedah is the only state in the Peninsular to record a double-digit absolute poverty rate. Sabah and Sarawak’s budget allocations may appear “huge” when compared to allocations for each state in the Peninsular. If Sabah and Sarawak are, as Sabah and Sarawak claim themselves to be, a third each of Malaysia, then there could be a huge imbalance of allocations between the three Malaysian regions that are Sabah, Sarawak and Malaya.
In any case, where and how do Sabah and Sarawak intend to spend the “huge” budget for 2026 they get from the federal government? This should be the most important question rather than focusing on the “hugeness” of the budget allocations for 2026.
Little, displaced peoples in the interior of Sabah and Sarawak might not be as excited as urbanites about the budget announcement by the Prime Minister. The former may hear of the federal money coming to both regions in previous budgets, but many have yet to see how these “monies” are spent in ways that would uplift the state of basic facilities for them, who still lack clean piped water, 24/7 electricity supply and internet access that are taken for granted by urbanites.
It would be equally important for both Sabah and Sarawak to explain to their constituents how and where those “big monies” would be spent. In Sarawak, many former security-motivated resettlement schemes in Sekuau (Sibu) and in Nanga Tada, Nanga Jagaw and Nanga Ngungun (Kanowit) have been in dire straits. The communities are now inhabited by older folks as younger ones have left to seek opportunities outside their communities. The same is the case with resettlements in the Bakun area, such as those in Sungai Asap, Belaga. The settlement here was erected to move communities from the Bakun area to make way for the development of hydro dams. There is a clear and urgent need for attention and proper planning to bring them into mainstream development in Sarawak and Malaysia.
With the able and visionary leadership of Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, Sarawak is poised to generate higher income on its own. Many futuristic projects are being planned, and this will better position Sarawak in the next stage of development as Indonesia’s new Nusantara Capital City (or Ibu Kota Nusantara) in East Kalimantan is set to be the next hub that will push development and pull investment in the region.
Prof Datuk Dr Jayum Jawan is currently a Fellow of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia and at the Institution of Malay Rulers Chair at UiTM.
This is the personal opinion of the author(s) and does not necessarily represent the views of DayakDaily. Letters to the Editor may be lightly edited for clarity.
— DayakDaily
