CARING GESTURE: Billy (middle row, sixth right), Marcus (middle row, third left) and members of PKKS having their photo taken with some of the fire victims including Nyaban (middle row, fourth left).
MIRI: Donations continue to pour in for some 200 fire victims of Uma Badeng, Sungai Asap, in Belaga District whose homes were destroyed by fire on May 30.
Among the latest donations received were RM15,000 government grant from the member of parliament for Hulu Rajang Datuk Billy Abit Joo.
The Sarawak Kenyah National Association (PKKS) also donated RM3,160 together with RM1,300 worth of food items including two trucks of used clothing to the victims for the 15 affected families.
PKKS president Marcus Gau Liang and his deputy Kennedy Chuk and other committee members accompanied Billy to hand over the donations last Thursday to the village headman Nyaban Kulleh.
Billy, while expressing his sympathy to the victims, urged them to find ways and means of intensifying safety measures at the village.
He proposed that they rebuild the longhouse under the new concept of longhouse, which not only prioritise aspects of fire break in the building but also give individual title to each family.
Meanwhile, Marcus when contacted by The Borneo Post yesterday expressed his gratitude to Billy for his concern for the fire victims and also others within the Bakun Resettlement area.
He said Billy took the lead in negotiating with the federal government that subsequently agreed in principle to write
off the remaining housing loans of about RM41 million owed by some 1,500 families who were relocated following the implementation of the Bakun hydroelectric dam.
“The announcement on the matter made by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in January this year surely reduced the burden of the people. We thanked Billy for his initiatives,” he said.
Meanwhile, Marcus, on behalf of the fire victims, appealled for more donations to help ease their burden.
Donations in cash and kinds can either be channelled through PKKS or directly to the village headman Nyaban who can be contacted at 019-8264362.
Marcus of PKKS can be contacted at 016-8527645 or his secretary Francis Ding Anyai at 019-8552820.
No one was injured in the fire incident that occurred at around 4pm. Electrical short circuit was believed to have caused the fire.
Among the lost items were cars, motorcycles, personal documents, old beads, traditional costumes, old handicraft and cash.
The destroyed Block F suffered similar fate last year.
Two other blocks were also destroyed by fire last year and only one of them had been rebuilt.