Saturday 16 April 2022

Following Kampung Mutap jetty controversy, Uggah now wants grassroots leaders to inform him if projects are improperly done

 LUBOK ANTU, April 16 -  After controversies surrounding the construction of a jetty in Kampung Mutap in Bekenu, Deputy Sarawak Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah now wants grassroots leaders to inform him  if any project for  the people are not done based on their specifications.

Picture: Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah (standing, 2nd right) being welcomed by an Iban ajat on arrival for the opening of Balai Ringin TDM.

He said this when officiating at the Balai Ringin and  Lubok Antu Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu(PBB ) branches triennial  delegates meetings(TDM) today.

The Balai Ringin TDM was held at a hotel in Serian while the Lubok Antu TDM was held at the Lubok Antu Sports Complex in here.

"Please let me  know of such matter especially if the projects  involve the state JKR (Public Works Department).

"Any project under the  Rural Transformation Project(RTP) , Minor Rural  Projects (MRP) or from the  federal government  like the construction of bridges, roads and others approved for implementation, they must meet JKR specifications in terms of materials used, quality, quantity, size or length and other.

"These are details in the Bill of Quantities( BQ) to the contractors.

"So the issue of them being done not according to the specifications should not arise.

" It is very sad when we allocate the  funds, things are not done properly. 

"The projects are supposed to benefit the rakyat.

"They are certainly not to become a point of contention and dissatisfaction between them and the government," Uggah who is  the Minister of Infrastructure  and Port Development, said.

Although he was not specific, he is believed to be referring to the construction of a jetty at Kampung Mutap in Bekenu, Miri, which has created controversy after it emerged that it cost RM50,000 to complete.

The JKR had said the jetty was built using belian, a contention which was disputed by the villagers who claimed that only the stilts and the ladders were of belian wood while the rest were other timber species.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) had also conducted its own investigation and said that there was no element of corruption involved in the construction.

The MACC had said it had consulted an expert and found that all the wooden materials were from belian timber.

Uggah, who is also a PBB deputy president, said the party leaders at grassroots level should be  the eyes, voices and ears of the government.

On the triennial delegates conference, he was glad to note that a number of  branches had passed their respective resolutions  for no contest for the  president and  the two posts of deputy president at the party  coming  conference in June soon.

He said this reflected their full confidence in the top leadership.

"This too will  further solidify the party strength and unity so vital to allow it to overcome the many challenges expected to come in the future," he said.

Uggah was also glad that all the branch meetings had been held very smoothly and without any occurrence of dissatisfaction or anger.

On another matter raised at both meetings today, Uggah reassured members that PBB would continue to enjoy its quota of community leaders in areas where the party had no elected representatives. 

He called on them to inform  him and other top leaders if the service tenure of any of such leaders were about to  end.

"Please inform us early so we can make our preparations to either reappoint or appoint  new one," he said.

Friday 25 March 2022

MTUC Sarawak says Sarawak Labour Ordinance is obsolete, needs to be amended

KUCHING, March 25, 2022 - The Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) Sarawak has asked the government to amend the Sarawak Labour Ordinance 1958 to be at par with the Employment Act 1955 (Act 265) in the next sitting of Parliament or otherwise extend the EA to the state.

Its secretary Andrew Lo (picture) said it has proven time and again that having separate laws has resulted in workers in Sabah and Sarawak being left behind.

While we are pleased that workers in West Malaysia will get the eagerly awaited better benefits, very regretfully workers in Sabah and Sarawak will be left out as the EA does not covered the two states as they have their own separated Labour Ordinances,” Lo said in a statement.

He was commenting on the passage of the amendments to Employment Act in Parliament recently.

The Sarawak Labour Ordinance was last amended in Parliament in 2004.

The Employment (Amendment) Bill 2021 tabled in the Dewan Rakyat on March 21 is to extend the application of the Employment Act 1955 (Act 265) to all employees regardless of salary earned.

Among others, tyhe amendments are to enable all workers in the country to receive the minimum benefits and protection prescribed under Act 265.

Lo said the SLOs of Sabah and Sarawak are hopeless antiquated as the previous improvement to the Employment Act in 14 years ago in 2008 had yet to be incorporated.

We don’t even have provisions for sexual harassment prevention and part time workers, but are already in the existing EA,” he said.

He said the Premier of Sarawak has proudly claim that he want Sarawak to lead the country in   economic development, but he must also ensure that lead in the labour standards as well.

Friday 11 March 2022

Peter John supports efforts for Sarawak to have control over issuance of citizenship to genuine natives

 By Simon Peter

KUCHING, March 11, 2022 - A well-known human rights activist expressed support for Sarawak to have control over the issuance of citizenship by the state government to stateless people born in Sarawak.

Picture: Human rights activist Peter John supports effort for Sarawak to have control over issuance of citizenship to genuine natives

Peter John said there are thousands of genuine natives in the remote rural areas who have remained stateless.

“This represents a clear failure of the federal authorities to understand the specific context of the state and its individual history and indigenous culture,” Peter said in a statement.

He noted that Minister of Women, Childhood and Community Wellbeing Datuk Sri Fatimah Abdullah has taken a step in urging Premier Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Openg to take up the issue with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob for Sarawak to have control on the issuance of Malaysian citizenship.

He said Sarawak should have control over the issuance of citizenship now it has regained its original status as an equal partner to Malaya and Sabah in the federation of Malaysia.

Peter, who has been assisting many stateless persons in Sarawak to apply for the Malaysian citizenship certificates, said he believes that the stateless issue can be solved if the state government is granted the control.

Peter, a committee member of the Global Human Rights Federation, said many parents in remote areas are also illiterate and ignorant on the urgency and importance of registering the births of their children.

He said the parents only realise the importance of birth certificate when they want to register their children to study in government schools or when their children apply for jobs in towns.

Peter said, without these documents, the children may not be admitted to government schools and they are denied free health services from the government clinics and hospitals.

He said these children should be granted the citizenship on the basis of written testimonies of their village chiefs or community leaders, without the use of birthday certificates and identity cards, as this system is closer to their practice of customary law or Adat, which itself is law in Sarawak.

He added there should not be a problem as the village chiefs or community leaders know everybody in their community.

He said the National Registration Department (NRD) should not insist that all applications for birth certificates and identity cards must provide written documents as proof that they are born in Sarawak. 

Speaking at the International Women’s Day on March 8, Fatimah urged  for the state government to be granted control over the issuance of citizenship to stateless persons born in Sarawak, especially children.

She said this was important because it would enable the affected children to have the same rights as children with Malaysian citizenship status, especially in education.

She said since the setting up of the special committee on citizenship under Article 15A of the Federal Constitution, a total of 969 applications for citizenship have been received from 2016 to October 22, 2021.

She said only 253 applications have been approved as of today, while the remaining are still under consideration.

“What is most regrettable is that while waiting for the decision of the federal Home Affairs Ministry, these children are denied receiving or enjoying children’s rights, such as education, health, employment opportunities and receiving welfare aids,” Fatimah said.

She urged Abang Johari  to bring up the issue with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob so that as an autonomous region, the state should be given a special power to solve the stateless issue by itself.

SEB: Fire at Permyjaya commercial unit in Miri was caused by illegal electricity connection at cryptocurrency mining centre

 By Mohamad Ahmad Sallehuddin

KUCHING, March 11, 2022 - An illegal electricity connection by a cryptocurrency mining centre is found to  have started a recent fire at double-storey commercial unit at Permyjaya in Miri, said Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB) today.

Picture: The burnt illegal connection at the cryptocurrency mining centre in Miri

A statement issued by SEB said the fire not only caused extensive damaged to the premises but also 48 units of cryptocurrency mining servers.

“SEB was alerted after the firefighters responded to a distress call. The fire was successfully put out after an emergency shutdown was performed to disconnect the electricity supply to the premises for safety purposes,” the statement said.

It added in a follow up investigation and site inspection, SEB’s technical team found 48 units of burnt cryptocurrency mining servers and evidence of electricity supply connected illegally with direct tapping cables bypassing the electricity meter.

The statement said preliminary investigations indicate that the fire was caused by the unsafe illegal wiring connection, pointing out that cryptocurrency mining servers are energy-intensive machines operating 24 hours daily, often requiring cooling units to avoid them from overheating.

Non-standard fuses and illegal wiring connections commonly used in power theft can easily overload the electrical system capacity, increasing the risk of short circuits, appliance damage, fires and even loss of lives in addition to disrupting the stability of supply in the area,” it said.

The statement said the estimated losses to have been incurred is more than RM13,000 per month in unregistered electricity consumption from this case and a police report has been lodged over this matter.

It said the premises owner and the tenant will be called to assist in the investigation.

SEB said since 2021, there were nine  fire cases linked to cryptocurrency mining recorded in Sarawak, with eight  of them from Miri alone.

Even though there were no fatalities in all these incidents, building owners and neighbours have incurred significant losses and property damage,” the statement said.

The statement reminded customers not to steal electricity as it is an illegal and a very dangerous act. Electricity theft is a criminal offence under Section 33(5) of the Electricity Ordinance, which carries a penalty of up to RM100,000 and/or five years jail if found guilty.

Together with the Ministry of Utility and Telecommunication (MUT) and the police, the utility company will continue to track down power thieves that steal electricity to maximise their profits at the expense of public safety.

All SEB customers are reminded not to trust service providers claiming to be able to reduce electricity use or allow premises owner to enjoy unlimited usage of electricity through meter tampering.

Meter inspection teams are trained to detect various electricity theft methods, including tampered meters, fake electricity meter covers and underground direct tapping as part of Sarawak Energy's efforts to curb power theft,” the statement said.

Wednesday 9 March 2022

Citrawarna programme in Kuching sparks Covid-19 cluster, public's fear confirmed

 KUCHING, March 9, 2022 - The public’s fear that last month’s Citrawarna Keluarga Malaysia programme at the waterfront could lead to an outbreak of Covid-19 infections has now been confirmed.

Picture: More people could be infected with Covid-19 as an estimated 50,000 attended the Citrawarna Keluarga Malaysia programme last month

According to Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) in a statement, the programme has triggered a cluster, aptly named Citrawarna cluster, where 21 individuals were tested positive for Covid-19.

The number of positive cases could be more, and according to SDMC, an estimated 50,000 people attended and participated in the programme, who included federal and state ministers.

With such a large number of people, it is almost impossible to comply with the standard operating procedures (SOPs), where social distancing was not possible.

It is reported that a few VVIPs in Sarawak were already tested positive, but no details are available if they are infected while attending the programme.

The Citrawarna cluster was triggered by an index case,  a 45-year old local man who was tested positive for Covid-19.

He was screened on February 27 at a private hospital and was tested positive with Covid-19.

According to SDMC, another 32 other individuals were tested negative while the outcome on six other individuals are still pending.

Another 24 individuals, who have a history of attending the programme, were also reported to be Covid-19 positive.

SDMC has made an urgent appeal to  individuals who attended the programme to self-monitor their health conditions and do their own screening.

On another matter,  Sarawak registered 1,727 Covid-19 cases today, with Kuching contributing 584 of the total cases, followed by Miri with 281, Sibu 193, Bintulu 115 and Samarahan, 100 cases.

SDMC said out of 1,727 cases, 663 were in Category One and 1,051 in Category Two, 12 in Category Four and one, Category Five.

It said two individuals, a 72-year old man from Kapit, and a 60-year old woman from Mukah have died from Covid-19 infection.

It said they both health-related issues such as diabetes, kidney problems and high blood pressure.