KUCHING: Some of the RM31 billion worth of reserve has to be spent to provide better infrastructure, utilities and social amenities for the people in sub-urban areas particularly the rural areas.
This was clarified by the Secretary-General of Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS), Datuk Joseph Salang Gandum during a press conference at PRS Headquarters here yesterday. The press conference was held to clarify on the RM31 billion statement reported by a local newspaper recently.
“We had a dinner on Sunday and during then, our president, Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Jemut Masing mentioned the need to provide infrastructure, social amenities, utilities in sub-urban areas particularly the rural areas.
“According to him, although we have RM31 billion worth of reserve, we are still hearing the need from the people to have better facilities and amenities. In town area, we also heard about not having enough treated water, electricity, telecommunication coverage, and others. Thus, it is ironic if we have huge reserve and yet we are not able to provide this infrastructure and utilities to the people,” he said.
Masing in his statement said, “Since we have the reserve, we spend it on the people’s need and what it takes to provide the facilities to the communities who are requesting for the facilities.
“If we don’t, we may lose not only the seat and constituency but we may lose the government. So why are we allowing such situation if we do not want those who will defeat us because we do not provide the services to spend the money and then claim the credit, because they undertake the construction of the road, the connecting of electricity, providing water, communications and making sure that the schools are getting better.”
Salang emphasised, “That is the context of our president suggesting that we spend some of the reserve, not empty the reserve. Of course it will be ridiculous to spend all the money because we may not have RM31 billion in cash, some of it is in the form of assets which you cannot spend, anyone would understand that.
“Instead of having huge reserve and not providing the infrastructure and facilities to our communities, we must find way to spend some of that reserve.”
The Secretary-General added, “What particularly turn us on as supreme council members is that some of the cabinet colleagues of the president are not ready to understand what is being said but coming into the bandwagon to attack him to say how ridiculous his suggestion was.
“Do they really understand the suggestion? Why won’t they ask him? After all, they are the State Cabinet members, they are colleagues.”
In regards to the post about RM31 billion statement by Masing in a local daily, Salang revealed that the party was considering legal recourse and looking into the angle.
“We are hoping to have an appointment with Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi (Dr) Abang Johari Tun Openg, to let him know what we feel not about his leadership but why our president expressed the suggestion to form a single multiracial party and why there was suggestion that we spend some of the money from the reserve that we have because we have so much to be done on the ground.
“If we don’t speak up, there will be somebody else to speak up on behalf of those voters who are lagging behind from day one until now where they compare themselves with the urban residents and still left far behind from development,” he said.
In relations to the statement on single multiracial party suggested for GPS (Gabungan Parti Sarawak), Salang said it was only a suggestion as the party has yet to be registered with the ROS (Registry of Societies Malaysia).
“Masing said this after the endorsement of the supreme council, and he did not speak alone on that, but whether it is accepted or not by the other component parties in GPS, we don’t know.
“If it is not accepted then we will have to obey the decision made by all component parties. So there is no conclusion with regard to whether Masing is demanding or dictating the component parties to accept the suggestion, we are just suggesting excellable structure that voters will consider acceptable,” he said.
