Violet Yong
KUCHING: Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem must ensure that the waiver of quit rent benefits Sarawakians only.
Pending assemblywoman Violet Yong said when the waiver of the quit rents came into force, it should not apply to companies such as foreign investment companies and large-scale plantation companies.
“The quit rents contributed around RM50 million to the state coffer in 2015 and a substantial part of it came from industrial usage.
“Therefore, the chief minister should make sure that the waiver only applies to Sarawakians and not companies such as foreign investment and big-scale plantation companies,” she said in a statement received here yesterday.
Yong, who is also DAP organising secretary, suggested that for a start, quit rents affecting residential, commercial, shophouses and small agricultural usage be waived.
“The rights and interest of Sarawakians must come before others.”
Adenan recently announced during a live interview with RTM TV1 that the state government would be abolishing several quit rents in the state by the middle of this month.
The move, he said, was one of the initiatives taken by the state government to assist the poor especially those living in rural areas.