Challenges of empowering Dayaks in business – With Tan Sri Celestine Ujang

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Tan Sri Celestine Ujang

DAYAK ENTREPRENUERS: DCCI members at the chamber’s annual general meeting last year. — Photos courtesy of DCCI

ANNIVERSARY DINNER: File photo of DCCI’s 10th anniversary business dinner held in Kuching on Feb 1, 2013. (From left) Ujang, Minister of Land Development Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Jemut Masing, Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Alfred Jabu, DCCI president Tan Sri Datuk Amar Leo Moggie and Assistant Minister of Industrial Development (Industral Estate Development) Datuk Peter Nansian. Ngusie.

EMPOWERING the Dayaks to venture into business is a tall order.

However, in recent years, the Dayak Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) has been quite successful in providing the necessary ‘tools’ for the community to take up and compete in commerce and industry.

thesundaypost spoke to DCCI deputy president Tan Sri Celestine Ujang on the chamber’s efforts to train up more Dayak entrepreneurs.

The following are excerpts of the interview with Ujang, a former state cabinet minister, who retired from politics in 2001.

 

Q: What are some of the DCCI programmes to promote entrepreneurship among the Dayaks?

A: First of all, I would like to say DCCI’s main objective is to organise and prepare its members for a more proper footing to avail themselves of the many opportunities offered by the government and the private sector.

To nurture a vibrant entrepreneurial and business culture among its members, DCCI organises networking and various training programmes throughout Sarawak to prepare them for meaningful participation in business.

Capacity building has been carried out with over 100 training programmes, workshops and seminars for more than 11,000 members and non-members of Dayak origin statewide.

For most of the capacity building programmes, DCCI maintains cordial linkages with government ministries, agencies and NGOs such as the Industrial Development Ministry, the Malaysian Industry Development Authority (Mida) and the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB).

Others include the SME Corp government agencies such as Majlis Amanah Rakyat (Mara), Prosper, Perbadanan Ushawan Nasional Berhad (PUNB), Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM), Tekun, Small Medium Enterprise Development Bank Malaysia Berhad (SME Bank), Unit Peneraju Agenda Bumiputra (Teraju), Rubber Industry Smallholders Development Authority (Risda) and Lembaga Lada Malaysia (LLM).

 

Q: How far has DCCI managed to tap the potential of Dayaks in business?

A: To date, DCCI has about 600 members comprising Dayak businessmen, entrepreneurs and professionals. As stated earlier, DCCI’s main focus for the last few years has been on capacity building. This is because we realise it’s one of the ways to tap the potential of the Dayaks in business.

In this way, we try to encourage them to have at least the basic foundation for starting their business. As you are aware, most of the Dayak communities are lagging behind in terms of business and economic participation.

The response to DCCI’s capacity building programmes has been encouraging over the past few years. We consider that as some measure of success on our part, given the circumstances we are in.

 

Q: How does DCCI plan to train more Dayaks to get into business both in the short and long term?

A: DCCI only facilitates training provided by government agencies and NGOs. As a business chamber, we do not provide training for our members as such since it’s not our objective.

Our short term plan is to continue our capacity building programme. Over the long term, we hope to enhance our present programme when we have the requisite funding and the capacity to do so.

 

Q: Will DCCI set up a business venture that will benefit the Dayak community as suggested by Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud recently?

A: Actually, DCCI already has an investment arm — Permodalan Dayak Berhad (PDB). This is a public company and its shareholding is reserved for the Dayak community.

We welcome all Dayak members to participate in this investment. DCCI is liaising with other Dayak associations to discuss the Chief Minister’s proposal.

 

Q: As deputy president of DCCI, what have been the challenges you faced in training the Dayaks for business?

A: As a young business chamber catering for the Dayak business community, we have inevitably faced various challenges.

The Dayaks are mostly found in the rural and semi-urban areas although there are now sizeable numbers in towns.

In such a setting, there are challenges in terms of logistics, disseminating business information and the like.

Furthermore, Dayak businessmen find it difficult to get the requisite licences and financing facilities as the requirements are often too stringent for them.

 

Q: Will DCCI suggest to the state government for NCR land to be issued with titles so that it can be used as bank collateral? If not, what other means are available as start-up capital?

A: In fact, DCCI has been raising this matter with the relevant authorities for the last few years both at the state and federal levels. We are hoping more titles will be issued soon as it will greatly assist Dayak businessmen in securing the necessary financing from the banks and financial institutions.

However, without land titles as security, there are other financing facilities or grants available from Tekun and Amanah Ikhtiar as small and medium-sized loans to Bumiputera entrepreneurs.

SME Corp can also be approached for funds and grants to support small and medium-sized enterprises.

 

Q: What are some of DCCI’s future plans for Dayak businessmen and women?

A: We hope more Dayak entrepreneurs and professionals will join DCCI and together, we can work and plan to improve our business standing in society.

 

Q: Can the Dayak community be as developed as the other communities by 2020 as envisaged by the government? If not, how should the community be assisted?

A: Looking at the present scenario where there is a wide economic gap between the Dayaks and the other communities, that 2020 goal for the former would appear difficult to develop and achieve.

But with some government assistance and affirmative action, I believe a lot of development and improvement can be achieved for the Dayak community.

 

Q: As a former politician, how do you see the future of Dayak politics in Sarawak and also Malaysia?

A: The Dayaks – that is the Ibans, Orang Ulus and Bidayuhs — form the biggest Bumiputera group in Sarawak with a total population of 1.1 million or 40.7 per cent of the state’s 2.7 million population. This population ration also represents some 4.07 per cent of the total Malaysian population of 27 million people.

The Dayaks have been politically divided since day one of our independence in Malaysia and even now, they are divided into too many groupings — political or apolitical.

Under such circumstances, the Dayaks will continue to find difficulties uniting as a group. Too many factions are bad for the community.

The Dayaks must be prepared to sink their political or personal differences and find a solution in order to work together for common aspirations and purposes or else we shall continue to crawl to achieve our success.

The politics of accommodation, as strongly displayed by the Dayaks, should not be taken for granted. The strong support of the Dayaks for the BN government should be fully recognised by the BN leaderships at both state and federal levels.

In order to reward the Dayaks for their politics of accommodation and strong support for the BN government, the community should be given equal economic opportunities, including jobs and promotions both in the state and federal civil service.

 

Q: How have you been doing after retiring from active politics? Please share with us your pastime. Do you plan to write a book, memoirs, etc?

A: I decided to retire from active politics in 2001 by not contesting again in the state elections that year in N.52 Kemena, a constituency I had been representing for 27 years since 1974.

My reason for early retirement was to be close to my family and help in the education of my grandchildren.

Our daughters have been quite successful in their educational achievements. Malvina holds a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering (Hon) degree and a Bachelor of Commerce (Aust) degree; Angelina, a Bachelor of Social Sciences degree, a Graduate Diploma (Public Sector Mgt) and Masters in Public Administration (Aust), and Dr Priscilla, a Phd in Chemical Engineering (Imperial College, London) ACGI.

I didn’t think it would be wise to have a completely relaxed retirement and so I have been involved in looking after a small-time business. In addition, I have been serving as deputy chairman of Bintulu Development Authority (BDA) since 2003.

I’ve been a member of Sarawak Curtin Malaysia University Council for nine years till now. I’m one of the founding DCCI members and currently its deputy president, and am also a board of trustee member of the Dayak Cultural Foundation. Now, I’m an independent director of public listed company the Harbour Link Group.

I’m presently writing my memoirs and hope to compile them into a book in three years.