MIRI: Parti Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) Wanita chief Senator Datuk Doris Brodie has lauded Chief Minister Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud’s proposal to increase the participation of youths in local councils.
She said although it requires an amendment to the local authorities ordinance to have the numbers increased “it is something that needs to be done in order to accommodate the younger generation.”
The state government will seek to amend the Local Authorities Ordinance at the coming State Legislative Assembly sitting to increase the maximum number of councillors from the present 25 to 30.
The chief minister said the proposal was to increase the participation of youth in local councils as part and parcel of nation building and in decision making.
Doris expressed happiness at his foresight to get youths more involved in decision making at the local councils but felt that the initiative should also include the fairer sex.
“I also foresee that we need to have more participation of females in decision making at various levels within our community as currently females form approximately 62 per cent of student population in institutions of higher learning in the country,” she said.
“These figures cannot be ignored and our system must be gender inclusive,” she said further, elaborating that the present number of female councillors was not a fair representation of women participation and contributions to nation building.
She also said Sarawak could be a role model to other states in the country.