Working towards a solution
by Lim How Pim and Lee Ya Yun, reporters@theborneopost.com. Posted on August 11, 2012, Saturday
Prime Minister pledges federal cooperation with state government in ironing out differences
KUCHING: The federal government will work closely with the state government in ironing out differences and will honour all its promises to the state.
This pledge was made by Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak at the breaking of fast with state leaders and local dignitaries at the State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Complex in Petra Jaya near here last night.
“The co-operation between federal and state government is good. Furthermore, we respect each other well and problems can be resolved if we work closely together,” he said.
He called on state leaders to unite all strata of population to rally behind BN in the 13th general election (13GE) to maintain Sarawak as BN’s fixed deposit so that ‘Bumi Kenyalang’ would remain as ‘Bumi Barisan Nasional (BN)’.
Towards this end, he said leaders must take care of common people by looking into their needs.
The federal government had ‘touch points’, a form of allocation for MPs to distribute funds among the community and the needy, he added.
“We have to work hard to serve the common people. There is no reason not to reach out to them and touch points are practically government funds you can use for all purposes.”
He pointed out that it need not take a genius to figure out what the opposition had promised could not be counted on and fulfilled.
“We do not need to be a rocket scientist to calculate that the opposition’s promises are empty. They promised free education, writing off the RM44 billion PTPTN loan, reduce petrol prices and bring down toll fees and so forth.
“If we do some calculation, we will find out that (if those promises were kept) Malaysia will become a bankrupt nation overnight.
“They know they cannot do it, but BN is different. We honour our promises and this is in line with not just Islamic principles but also universal principles. In BN, we keep our promises,” he said
“We have clear direction for the future but the opposition is directionless. We have been consistent in our struggles – it takes a long time to build a nation, but a short time to bring it down.”
Believing ‘hard work pays off’, Najib said: “The harder you work, the luckier you get. Luck comes your way because you work hard and God will be on your side.”
During the holy fasting month, his workload had not been reduced, “In fact, Ramadan to me is busier.”
He also urged Malaysians to continue observing and practising mutual respect and “say no to extremism and violence” to preserve social peace and harmony.
Earlier, Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud said the contribution by Muslims was meant to benefit only Muslims.
He said the contributions, in whatever form, were meant to help all the less fortunate groups in the country, regardless of their background.
He thanked Najib for attending the dinner, saying that the visit of the prime minister showed that his political emphasis and priority was serving the people.
Also present were Najib’s wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor and Taib’s wife Puan Sri Ragad Kurdi Taib.
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