KOTA KINABALU: Federal and state government agencies that implement programmes related to rural development, poverty eradication, human capital development and other social and welfare programmes have been urged to work together.
Balung assemblyman Datuk Syed Abas Syed Ali told the assembly yesterday that all the activities of these agencies were not coordinated and were proceeding on their own with their own programmes.
“These agencies are not brought together under one roof. It is as if there is a barrier and obstacle for all these agencies to collaborate with one another to avoid overlapping each other in their programmes,” he said.
He added that everyone wanted to become the ‘hero’ and have forgotten the main aim of the government’s planning which was to eradicate poverty.
Syed Ali also urged the government to consider providing a lorry driver’s licence free of charge to one child in a poverty stricken family.
“This include paying for the RM1,000 to RM1,500 cost of getting the licence to drive a lorry. When they have obtained their licence, they could become the lorry drivers for estates in Sabah,” he said.
He reminded that most of the estates in Sabah were employing lorry drivers who were non-citizens.
“They can earn up to RM2,000 per month,” he said.
He also called on the major companies to employ locals as lorry drivers and the Road Transport Department to verify the nationalities of all the lorry drivers at factories.