KUCHING, Feb 21: Former Sarawak Governor the late Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud had fiercely guarded Sarawak’s immigration rights, kept all negative elements off Sarawak’s shores and built the ‘Land of the Hornbills’ into a paradise which celebrates religious freedom and racial diversity.
In stating this, Governor Tun Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar also pointed out that it is an undeniable fact Taib had sacrificed 63 out of 87 years of his life to serve Sarawak and helped transformed Sarawak from backwater into what it is today.
“It was Tun Taib who had sowed the spirit of peace and harmony among the peoples of all races and religions in Sarawak, and whose legacy we now enjoy.
“The fruit of his hard and laborious work to ensure that no race will be left out in all the policies while he was the Chief Minister of Sarawak for over three decades has continued to be fostered until today.
“He is indeed the ‘Pillar of Harmony’ of Sarawak while he was the Chief Minister and later as the Yang di-Pertua Negeri who again was the Governor for all,” said Wan Junaidi in a press statement today.
Taib, who served as Sarawak’s chief minister for over three decades and later as Governor for almost a decade, passed away at the age of 87 earlier this morning at a private hospital in Kuala Lumpur. — DayakDaily
