BINTULU: Youths from the indigenous communities in Belaga who have the academic credentials and experience are the assets needed to boost the development of areas around the Bakun hydro-electricity dam.
Assistant Minister of Culture and Heritage Liwan Lagan underlined that Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd – developer and manager of the dam project – should offer more job opportunities in terms of contracts for locals and if necessary, training them on particular areas.
“Nevertheless, I thank Sarawak Hidro for being a responsible company. It has been organising many activities for and with the Belaga folk as part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR),” he said after launching safety and security mitigation measures within Bakun reservoir at the jetty there on Thursday.
Liwan, who is also Belaga assemblyman, believed that through Wargana Group, more economic activities could be held, from which the impact and benefits could be felt by the locals. In turn, he added, this would enable them to contribute holistically to the development of Bakun dam and its surrounding areas.
Moreover, the assistant minister also welcomed the idea of setting up the Orang Ulu and Cultural Heritage Museum, which could be the hub for restoring and preserving the indigenous
cultures and heritage in Belaga.
According to him, Sarawak Hidro has already allocated a piece of land for the proposed museum, of which he hoped would come with an access road.
“I will meet the Chief Minister (Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem) on this,” said Liwan.
On royalty payment to locals affected by the dam and those relocated to the new Sungai Asap Belaga resettlement, Liwan said they would continue pursuing on the matter until they got the compensation for leaving their homeland behind in giving way to the construction of Bakun dam.
“Actually the matter had been discussed between the Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak) and former chief minister (Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud), but the situation was that any royalty could only be on government-to-government basis.
“On Sept 18, I met Adenan and he said the state government could consider settling not in terms of royalty, but ex gratia payment.”
Meanwhile Wargana chairman Datuk Billy Abit Joo said the security and safety measures at Bakun remained the top priority of the group, which is contracted by Sarawak Hidro to remove logs and debris from the reservoir.
He pointed out that Sarawak Rivers Board (SRB) had assigned three personnel at the security checkpoint there.
“The locals have been very supportive to every effort and programme meant for their wellbeing. We will continue helping the Belaga folk,” said the former Hulu Rajang MP.
Adding on, Sarawak Hidro managing director Zulkifle Osman said the group would continue monitoring the construction of a standard floating house by locals in the reservoir to ensure that it could operate smoothly.
“With the presence of the SRB officers, there will be strict enforcement. We don’t want jetty users or visitors to come and create disharmony among the locals,” he said.
On the solar power used on the floating house, Zulkifle said the use of this technology could be further promoted across the state.