Abang Johari speaking at the event last night.
KUCHING (Oct 25): The Sarawak government has so far spent around RM80 million for the State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) to implement its duties in the fight against the Covid-19 menace in the state, said Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg.
“Those who come to Sarawak, we ask them to be quarantined; all (costs) are borne by the state government including their meals.
“This is the sacrifice that we have to give and we hope that this should be enough for us to spend for the sake of the health of us all,” he said when speaking at the ‘Sarawak Harmoni Pemimpin Bersama Rakyat ‘Hati ke Hati’ Musical Presentation here last night.
At the event, he expressed his gratitude to the frontliners for their sacrifices and services rendered and regarded them as the nation’s heroes who did not hesitate in facing the threat of the Covid-19 pandemic.
When other people stayed home with their families, he said these frontliners had to sacrifice their time in service to the country.
“As such, on behalf of the government, I would like to express our gratitude to the frontliners who have sacrificed greatly,” he added.
Meanwhile, he lamented that the pandemic had deeply affected the lives of family members as they cannot be with the Covid-19 victims during their last moments.
At the same time, he said the frontliners had to be far from their families and sacrifice their time as their duties and responsibilities to the nation demanded it.
“This is a sad moment that we are facing during the Covid-19 pandemic. That is why I would like to congratulate the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture for holding this event (as an appreciation) to those (frontliners) who had served very well,” he added.
The ‘Sarawak Harmoni Pemimpin Bersama Rakyat ‘Hati ke Hati’ Musical Presentation held last night was a musical presentation on the Covid-19 pandemic crisis and was presented via digital multimedia, singing and dances alongside the musical score from Simfoni Orkestra Sarawak (SONS).
Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said the musical presentation was done in recognition and as a token of appreciation to the services rendered by all frontliners.
He said the event would be able to inject their spirits to continue serving the nation until it is free from the pandemic.