KUCHING, Nov 7: Parti Bumi Kenyalang (PBK) is of the opinion that the small sum of allocation provided to Sarawak under Budget 2021 as compared to the overall budget is an ‘insult’ to Sarawak and Sarawakians.
Its president Voon Lee Shan believes that the RM4.5 billion allocated to Sarawak is a form of bullying tactic or political suppression against Sarawak by the Perikatan Nasional (PN) federal government.
“The small budget clearly shows Sarawak is a colony of Malaya or at least is treated as one.
“Equal partners and equal opportunities are a myth only.
“Sarawak needs better roads, bridges, hospitals, school facilities, Internet coverage and other infrastructure but with only RM4.5 billion allocation, this is a bullying tactic or political suppression against Sarawak,” he said in a statement.
Voon noted the allocation to Sarawak was less than the RM5.1 billion allocated to Sabah whereby the neighbouring state has the support of United Malays National Organisation (Umno).
He gathered that Sarawak has consistently provided billions of revenue to the federal government through oil and gas resources and yet received just a small sum in return.
Hence, Voon opined that it is time for Sarawak to leave the federation of Malaysia with the small sum of money provided by the federal government.
He also believed that the “marriage” that Sarawak had with Malaya simply had not worked out.
On another note, Voon said the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) state government should work out a mechanism that all revenues collected by government departments be held by Sarawak State Treasury before the remainder be sent to the Federal Treasury. —DayakDaily
