(Standing from right) Ensiring and Dennis with the financial aid recipients and Dayang Azeeyani (middle row, third left) at Long Aton.
MIRI: A total of 23 fire victims of Long Aton longhouse in Tinjar Basin received a total of RM151,600 in financial aid from the state government through the Welfare Department (JKM) Miri last Thursday.
Telang Usan assemblyman Dennis Ngau presented the aid which consisted of cash, daily clothing assistance, school clothes and supplies, sleeping equipment, kitchen utensils and building materials to rebuild the ruined longhouse.
According to Dennis, this is a response from a government that is sympathetic to the people overwhelmed by the catastrophe.
“Indeed, the money given cannot replace what is lost, and the government is unable to replace everything because the government’s responsibility is throughout the country and not at only one particular area,” he told the Long Aton community.
He also praised the government officials who acted fast in addressing the problems of the people.
“The civil servants are the representative of the government and I applaud their effort in helping those in need promptly,” he added.
With regards to clearing the site of the fire, Dennis said he would seek to obtain a bulldozer and would get the helicopter pilot to identify the entry point for the bulldozer to the village.
“In the past, the gotong-royong work was easy as many people were helping out but now many of the younger generations have migrated to the city and I hope the villagers here will work in stages, although it will take time to rebuild the longhouse and I believe in the strong cooperation spirit among the Orang Ulu,” he advised.
Dennis also pointed out that he and Baram MP Anyi Ngau would render help as much as possible and that a committee was also formed to raise funds to help re-establish the longhouse.
He then drew attention to the RM5,000 contribution by JKM that had been added to the RM2,500 previously raised for fire victims to buy construction materials.
“We are grateful to our Minister of Welfare, Community Well Being, Women, Family and Childhood Development Dato Sri Fatimah Abdullah for being very concerned about the problems faced by the fire victims that she had asked for the increase.
“Dato Sri Fatimah understands the plight of the victims and knowing that the cost of everything has risen, the increase of the contribution is a timely matter,” he said.
In addition to the guidance from the church, Dennis also hope JKM would organise motivational counselling programme to help uplift the spirit of those traumatised by the calamity.
“The properties that have been built, kept safe for decades and with all the memories, was lost in a blink of an eye in the fire and this has certainly caused sadness and trauma to the victims.
At around 9.50pm on August 16, the 39-year-old, 22-door longhouse was razed by fire within minutes rendering 115 people homeless.
According to the longhouse folk, they tried to use fire extinguishers but all of them malfunctioned. It is also understood that due to communications problems, they only managed to contact the Marudi Fire and Rescue Department around 11.50pm.
Firefighters then faced difficulties getting to the longhouse as they needed to use a ferry and travel on timber tracks. They only reached the longhouse six hours later.
Also present with Dennis in Long Aton last Thursday were JKM Miri officers Ensiring Girang and Dayang Azeeyani Mohd Seri.