Govt urged to provide land for ex-servicemen as sign of appreciation
Posted on February 22, 2012, Wednesday
KUCHING: The newly-formed Sarawak Rangers Veteran Association (SRVA) is appealing to the state government to seriously consider providing ex-servicemen with land as a gesture of appreciation for their sacrifices in protecting the nation.
Its pro-tem secretary general Capt Mohd Johari Ibrahim (Retired) said if the government was really sincere in helping the veterans who have sacrificed their lives to fight the communists in the early days, then it would be most appreciated if the association be allocated with land they can transform into a proper settlement to carry out agricultural activities.
“We have put forward our requests on this matter in the past, but what the government
planned for us were housing schemes and that was not what we wanted.
“What we have been asking for is a piece of land for landless and poor veterans (like us) to build our houses and do a little bit of farming to support our livelihood.
“This is actually what we want and not housing schemes as recommended by the government,” he said.
He said housing scheme would be suitable for “successful and fortunate” veterans, but not those in the low-income group.
Johari disclosed this at a news conference at the State Armed Forces Veterans Affairs Department (JHEV) office here yesterday.
He added that although it could not be denied that among the estimated 15,000 ex-servicemen in Sarawak, there were those who could be categorised as successful.
“But it must also be remembered that there are also many of them (ex-servicemen) still living within the poverty level, especially those in the rural areas and interior parts of the state.
“For some they can’t even afford to pay their housing loans so the most suitable solution is give us land that we later will transform into a village of our own.
“I think it is not that difficult for the government to allocate a piece of land in the various divisions to be converted into special settlement areas for veterans. It is a question of whether the government wants to do it or not,” Johari said.
On a separate issue, Johari also urged the federal government to include the armed forces veterans, particularly the ex-Sarawak Rangers in the RM3,000 one-off special payment as announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak in 2012 Budget.
“Many of the veterans who served during the emergency have related to me that they were very disappointed and felt dejected after it was reported that they will not be getting the payment.
“It is not the amount that really matters, but what they want is their sacrifices be acknowledged and appreciated,” he said.
