KUCHING, Nov 4: Bintulu MP Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing urges the federal government to return the rights to distribute rice and sugar to the respective State governments of Sarawak and Sabah as a demonstration of the spirit of Malaysian Family (Keluarga Malaysia).
Tiong in a statement said the current rights to distribute rice and sugar in Malaysia is limited to one company thus calling on the government to move away from monopoly.
“Let these States manage these matters on their own and demonstrate the core values of ‘Keluarga Malaysia’,” he said.
Adding on, Tiong who is Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) president hoped that the federal government is serious in restoring the rights and status of Sarawak as stipulated in the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and provide for the construction and development for the State.
He pointed out that major road networks in Sarawak must be improved immediately and bring them up to the standards of roads in Peninsular Malaysia.
On the allocation of budget to the State, he hoped that the federal government will consider including more allocation for Sarawak in the next Budget which deserved higher development funding.
He outlined that if the RM75.6 billion development expenditure allocation in Budget 2022 is equally divided among the 11 states and two federal territories, each will have RM5.82 billion.
Despite being the top contributor to the national economy through its oil and gas production, Sarawak has been allocated a meagre sum of less than RM5 billion.
Tiong who is also Prime Minister’s Special Envoy to China thus called on the federal government to allocate more than RM5 billion for Sarawak. — DayakDaily
