Hii (foreground, right) hands over a document to Lau to lead SDCCLA.
SIBU: Community leaders here who seldom attend official functions are urged to do so to fulfil their obligations as befitting their positions.
In making the call, Sibu Resident Hii Chang Kee said they should try their best to serve the various communities and be proud of their high level of efficiency in doing so.
“I would also like to call upon the community leaders to take the initiative to be well versed with existing government policies and current issues through seminars organised by the Resident and District Offices and news media.
“Being knowledgeable, they could serve the communities more effectively and efficiently, as well as earn the respect of the communities by being knowledgeable,” he pointed out at the annual general meeting-cum-annual dinner of Sibu Division Chinese Community Leaders Association (SDCCLA) held at a hotel here on Saturday night.
Temenggong Dato Vincent Lau Lee Ming was unanimously re-elected as SDCCLA president for the 2017-2018 term.
As the function’s guest-of honour, Hii also said that the Sibu Resident and District Offices would continue to organise more seminars to enhance the knowledge of community leaders on various issues.
“We will continue to organise seminars to enable the community leaders to get to know government machineries, anti-corruption (programmes), anti-drugs (programmes) and other social issues better.
“We will also try to let them know about the various government development plans in order to serve the community in a better capacity,” he said.
Welcoming the community leaders to maintain close ties with the Resident and District Offices, he said: “Please do not hesitate to approach us to discuss and resolve the people’s issues on the ground.
“We will try our best to help within our ability and jurisdiction.”
He hoped that all community leaders who have not installed WhatsApps or Wechat apps on their phones would do so to communicate more effectively with the authorities and the various communities.
Sibu District has a total of 17 Chinese Penghulu and 75 Kapitan besides Temenggong and Pemanca, he disclosed.
According to Hii, his office has divided the Chinese Kapitan to serve under various Penghulu.
He also said his office has completed the delineation of zones for all the community leaders to cover the whole of Sibu District.
“The delineation of zones has been published on the Sibu Resident Office’s website at www.sibu.sarawak.gov.my.
“You can find the photos, names, addresses and contact numbers of all the Chinese community leaders in Sibu District. With this information we hope that the Sibu Chinese community will enjoy the convenience of knowing, getting help from and working together with community leaders in charge of their respective zones,” he said.
He congratulated the SDCCLA for successfully holding its annual general meeting for 2017.
He hoped that the annual general meeting would help the association to upgrade its services and also help the community leaders to serve the various communities with higher efficiency and the right focus.
“I am glad to note that most of the community leaders under the capable leadership of Temenggong Dato Vincent Lau Lee Ming and Pemanca Datuk Wong Kie Yik are positively carrying out their duties.
“That includes cascading government policies, conveying communities’ feedback, coordinating and resolving local issues, certifying government documents and attending official functions,” Hii added.