CM in Darwin to tour Carmor Plains Station

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Abang Johari (eighth left), Uggah (seventh left) and other members of delegation stand for a photograph with management and staff of Rosewood Station.

Buffaloes at Carmor Plains Station.

KUCHING: Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg led a delegation over the weekend to Darwin in Northern Territory, Australia, to tour a privately-owned Carmor Plains Station that will soon be acquired by Sarawak Economic Development Corporation (SEDC).

The Chief Minister’s Office in a statement yesterday said the delegation was in Darwin enroute to SEDC-owned Rosewood cattle station in Western Australia.

Other members of the entourage were Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah, Assistant Minister of Agriculture Dr Abdul Rahman Ismail, SEDC chairman Tan Sri Datuk Amar Abdul Aziz Hussein, permanent secretary to the Ministry of Modernisation of Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development Datu Ik Pahon Joyik and SEDC general manager Hadi Kadir.

The Carmor Plains Station covers an area of 100,000 acres and is accessible by three-hour drive byroad or 45-minute helicopter ride from Darwin.

It is home to wild and feral animals like water buffaloes, deer, cattle and crocodiles.

The buffalo population in the station is about 2,500.

“The station will become a fattening centre for cattle that are sent from Rosewood Station for export, and a breeding station for buffaloes that will be sent to Limbang for domestication,” the statement added.

The chief minister and his entourage had earlier visited Rosewood cattle station in Western Australia, which was acquired by SEDC in 1982.

There, they were briefed by the station’s management on development at the station and later taken on a tour of the various facilities of the one-million-acre ranch

While in Darwin, the chief minister and entourage also paid a courtesy call on Northern Territory Chief Minister Michael Gunner.

They had a 45-minute meeting where various issues of common interest to both NT and Sarawak were discussed.

NT has a population of 250,000, which is represented by two senators in the Australian Parliament while NT Parliament has 22 members.

Its main export are LNG, mineral and cattle.

Tourism is also a major revenue earner.

Abang Johari (third left) exchanges memento with Gunner at the end of the courtesy call. Also in the photo are (from left) Aziz, Uggah and Dr Abdul Rahman.