KUCHING: According to Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr James Masing (pic), the Prime Minister is finally listening to Sarawak’s needs for quality education.
“One billion for repairing dilapidated schools in Sarawak shows that Putrajaya through Najib is finally listening to our needs to have quality education. “Until Najib becomes the Prime Minister, education in the State had been sidelined,” he said.
Masing remarked that the RM500 million and RM300 million allocations for Sarawak’s rural roads and water supply respectively were good, but more is needed in the years to come. On land, he said the 30 million allocated for the surveying of the State’s NCR land showed that Putrajaya was sensitive to our need to have the NCR land surveyed and owned by the rightful owners.
“ The Land and Survey Department has to work harder to ensure that the 30 million is spent for this purpose, and the landowners must not be obstacles to have their land surveyed. “In the next few years, Sarawak must plan for its own infrastructure development, including the coastal roads and expressways, and we need to bid for more fund.
‘If we don’t have plans for roads or highways, how could we bid for funds? “That’s why my ministry is planning for coastal highways and bridges with total cost of no less than RM5 billion,” said Masing.