Telang Usan rep believes 50 per cent of Baram folk support dam project, only 10 per cent against it
KUCHING: Telang Usan assemblyman Dennis Ngau believes only about 10 per cent of the about 20,000 people affected by the proposed Baram HEP dam are against the RM4 billion project.
“I believe the vast majority of the people in Telang Usan are all for it (Baram HEP Dam). Perhaps only about 10 per cent of the people are totally against it for various reasons,” Dennis told The Borneo Post yesterday.
He believed when sufficient information are disseminated among the affected families, more people would agree with the project.
“I think at the moment at least 50 per cent of the affected people are for the Baram HEP Dam, and a further 40 per cent having a ‘wait and see’ attitude, which to me is positive.”
He was commenting on Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem’s statement that he (Adenan) was aware of a small group of people opposing the project by using blockades and feeding the people of Baram with false information.
Adenan had also appealed to Baram folk, particularly those living in the affected areas, not to be suspicious of the good intention of the government to develop their area.
The chief minister appealed to them to collaborate with the government in developing their area. He made the speech at an Orang Ulu gathering in Miri on Sunday.
Adenan stressed that total support from the Orang Ulu community was vital for the government to proceed with the social impact assessment study to, among others, work out compensation and resettlement issues.
Upon its completion, the Baram HEP would have a generating capacity of 1,200MW, which would be needed for the continuous development of the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE). A new township would also be established as part of the resettlement plan for the affected people.
Meanwhile, on the plan for Telang Usan to be elevated to a district, Dennis said it was good news for the people there as there would be more funding and better management in the area.
Currently, Telang Usan is a sub-district under the Marudi district. It has a population of about 30,000, made up of mostly Kayans and Kenyahs (about 60 per cent), Ibans (20 per cent), Penans and other Orang Ulu ethnic groups (about 10 per cent) and Chinese and Malays (about 10 per cent).
Its main administrative centre is Long Lama.