KUCHING, May 14: Sarawak will give all the necessary co-operation to the federal government in disseminating information on its development plans and programmes.
Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas emphasised that this was to ensure that the people get the correct message.
“Thus, the state government has no problem with members of the federal cabinet visiting the state. We can, in fact, help in the logistic arrangements provided their schedules and any request are sent in advance to the State Protocol and Event Management Unit of the Chief Minister’s office.
“Our cooperation, however, is only for official functions and not political programmes,” he said when meeting Deputy Minister of Communications and Multimedia Eddin Syazlee Shith here today.
As far as the state government was concerned, Uggah assured that it is still friendly to the federal government in mutually beneficial policies, plans and programmes.
“Myself, for instance, I have been appointed the joint chairman of the State and Federal Government Action Committee to monitor the successful implementation of all federal projects in the state. The other chairman is Works Minister Baru Bian,” he shared.
Meanwhile, Uggah, who is the chairman of the State Natural Disaster Relief Committee, expressed his disappointment over the little coverage that RTM had provided to the state anti-rabies operation.
“This is not a state political programme. We already have federal agencies like the National Disaster Management Committee (Nadma), Ministry Of Health, Department of Veterinary Services in Putrajaya, police, military, Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) and the Civil Defence Force working closely with us.
“In the many past meetings held, RTM officials had not been attending. This is sad as we need to communicate our strategies of dealing with the outbreak to the people,” he elaborated.
Uggah revealed that the Committee would continue with the anti-rabies operations to other parts of the state soon after the Hari Raya Aidilfitri break.
“So, I hope any miscommunication or misunderstanding here can be resolved,” he added.
The state Assistant Minister of Corporate Affairs Abdullah Saidol, who was present, called on the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and the police to take stern and immediate actions against those posting incendiary religious or racial issues on social media.
“In Sarawak, we have a stance where we do not tolerate such bigotry. Serious and immediate action must be taken against the perpetrators who can create disunity, instability and suspicion in our plural society,” he pointed out.
“They are just as dangerous as those suicide bombers or those going on killing sprees. When society is affected, it would be very difficult to repair the damage done,” he said.
In this respect, Abdullah added that any report made should not be considered as mere political play acting.
“This is very serious. It is a national security issue. So, we hope any report made to the police or the MCMC, there will be immediate action taken,” he urged. — DayakDaily
