PAKAN: Sarawak farmers now enthusiastic about growing oil palm and rubber have been advised not to neglect pepper cultivation.
Julau MP Datuk Joseph Salang said the crop, time and again, has proven to be a good income-earner for them despite its cyclical lows.
Speaking at a meet-the-people session at the Clement Nesau longhouse in Nanga Bayu, Kemalih, near here last night, the federal deputy information, communications and culture minister said a kilogramme of black pepper, for example, had recently fetched RM18.
“This is quite a lot of money for the estimated 67,000 rural households still planting pepper.
“The state, with over 14,453 hectares dedicated to the crop, produces over 25,000 tonnes of pepper annually and is still the country’s top producer,” he said.
Salang said the Pakan district here is among the state’s top pepper producing areas and, as such, he believed that the people had much experience with the crop.
On development, Salang said the Ministry of Rural and Regional Development had allocated an initial sum of RM43 million to build the much-awaited 28-km long Entabai-Rantau Limau Road in his parliamentary constituency.
“I talked to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak who suggested that the army through its ‘Jiwa Murni’ (heart and mind) project can help in its implementation,” he said.
He called on the people to be patient and not to be easily taken in by talk and flying letters by a certain group that he was against it.
Salang also said that he is prepared to defend his Julau seat for the fourth term in the next general election provided he has the endorsement of his party, Parti Rakyat Sarawak, Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud and Najib.
“I know there are attempts to try to discredit me with lies by a group not linked to PRS or the Barisan Nasional. But I am very confident of retaining the seat as I have been serving the constituents regularly and Julau has always been a traditional BN stronghold,” he said. — Bernama