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No bragging rights!

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Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi

KUCHING: Pakatan Harapan (PH) as a ruling government should not brag about being more generous than the previous Barisan Nasional (BN) administration, said Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister’s Department Datuk Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi.

“Of course, Sarawak and Sabah had always been allocated bigger budgets compared with the states in Malaya in every previous budget all these years.

“This is appropriate as the size of Sarawak and Sabah, if combined is larger than the total size of Malaya. Thus, it is obvious that they (Sabah and Sarawak) will need bigger allocations for development.

Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi

“However, as a ruling government, they (PH) should not brag about being more generous as the total amount is insignificant,” he told New Sarawak Tribune yesterday when asked to comment on Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng’s statement that he (Lim) was surprised with Sarawakians being unhappy with the 2020 federal budget allocation.

Dr Abdul Rahman who is Utilities Assistant Minister (Water Supply) added that Sarawak and Sabah always require more funding to fast track and facilitate development in various aspects in order to be on par with Malayan states.

He explained, “Our road systems are still far from satisfactory as compared to those available in Malaya. Some of our schools are still in dilapidated condition and warrant immediate attention.

“The need to upgrade our facilities to provide clean water and supply 24-hour electricity should be given higher priorities. These are the responsibilities of the federal government in our federation system.”

Putting political agendas aside, he asked the federal government to put more focus in developing Sarawak and Sabah in future planning in tandem with the Shared Prosperity Vision (SPV) 2030.

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