Awang Tengah (third right) with other VIPs officiating at the state-level Cooperatives Day 2017 at Kampung Belawai festival site.
SIBU: Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan has suggested that a collection centre for agriculture and sea products be set up in Tanjung Manis to cater for the central region.
“As we know, our Chief Minister has approved a collection centre in Lawas for the Northern Region and another collection centre in Samarahan for Southern Region.”
“That is why, we should have one collection centre for Central Region and Tanjung Manis is the most ideal for the purpose,” he said.
Awang Tengah was speaking on behalf of Chief Minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Abang Openg at the state-level Cooperative Day 2017 held at Kampung Belawai festival site yesterday.
“Tanjung Manis is the Halal Hub in Sarawak and thus it has great potential to be further developed. That is why the state government strongly emphasised the agricultural sector such as planting coconuts, pineapples, oil palm industrial cluster, fish factory, bird nest industry, tourism, poultry, prawns and many more,” he added.
Awang Tengah who is also Minister of Industrial and Entrepreneur Development, Second Minister of Urban Development and Natural Resources said Cooperative Day could instil greater awareness on the importance of cooperatives in the nation’s development.
He noted that in Sarawak alone, there were 1,002 cooperatives with membership of over 322,000 involved in property, plantation, service and tourism industries.
Deputy Minister of Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Dato Henry Sum Agong, Assistant Minister for E-Commerce Datuk Mohd Naroden Majais, Assistant Minister for Urban Planning, Land Administration and Environment Datu Len Talif Salleh, Assistant Minister for Corporate Affairs Abdullah Saidol, Tanjung Manis MP Datuk Norah Tun Abdul Rahman, Daro assemblyman Safiee Ahmad and Balingian assemblyman Abdul Yakub Arbi were also present.