KUCHING, Aug 31: Following the formation of Malaysia, Sarawak’s resources have been exploited for the development of Peninsular Malaysia.
Holding such a view, Parti Sedar Rakyat Sarawak (Sedar) president Dato Othman Abdillah demanded greater attention from the Federal government and more development funds, which Sarawak has been contributing.
“With advances in access to information, it is becoming harder for the people of Sarawak to feel the spirit of independence to the same depth as their Malayan brothers on Merdeka Day.
“The sense of sharing the fruits of independence is further diminished with the huge gap in the pace of economic and social development between Sarawak and the now more advanced Malayan states. Kuala Lumpur has exploited Sarawak’s resources for the greater advantage of developing Semenanjung Malaysia,” said Othman in a statement today.
He took the opportunity to remind the prime minister that Sarawakians have endured their poor treatment at the hands of Kuala Lumpur thus far purely in the spirit of family bondship.
“Sedar welcomes the new prime minister’s awareness of the need to be united in the ‘Keluarga Malaysia’ approach. The prime minister must now practise what he preaches so we may proudly say Happy Merdeka Keluarga Malaysia,” said Othman.
He held that Sarawak’s representatives in the federal administration and Parliament cannot be entirely blameless about the lack of development in Sarawak. To him, they must work harder towards achieving parity in prosperity for the people.
“How much longer do they need to prove themselves worthy of being Sarawak’s representatives?”
“Today, Malaysia ushers in her third prime minister and government in three successive Merdeka Days. It is appalling that the legislators are more focused on grabbing power, exploiting the blame game on the nation’s worsening medical and economic health.”
Even though he remained sceptical about the capability of the new line-up in government which consists mainly of previous Cabinet members, he hoped the new Cabinet will act wisely in handling the pandemic and again urged that all parties put their lust for power aside to provide some stability for any chance of achieving success for the sake of the public.
Othman did not forget to point out that Aug 31 is marked as a national public holiday in Malaysia as Hari Merdeka or Independence Day but by historical facts, Aug 31, 1957 was the day Malaya achieved independence from colonial rule and became a new Federationn, and Sarawak was then still a British colony. — DayakDaily
