Lating Minggang
KAPIT (July 16): Kapit Walikota Lating Minggang concurs with former federal minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Leo Moggie in reminding the Sarawak government not to lose focus on ordinary Sarawakians.
Lating said the statement was a timely reminder for the state government not to get distracted from giving much needed focus on providing basic infrastructure and uplifting the lives and livelihood of ordinary Sarawakians, including those in the rural areas.
“This is a good reminder. In the quest of moving forward towards the next phase of growth for the state to achieve a high income status, we must not lose focus and forget that there is still a wide disparity gap between the urban rich community and the poor rural community.
“The rural communities of which the Dayaks are the majority are still far behind in all aspects in terms of income, public facilities, utilities, education and so on.
“In Kapit for instance, many longhouses and villages are not even connected with roads. To them, to achieve a high income status is still a far reach.
“The rural infrastructure is still lagging behind the urban area. The socio-economic well-being of the rural community is still lagging behind too. Accessibility plays a critical role in economic and social development by providing access to economic and social opportunities,” he pointed out.
Thus, he hoped the government would expedite infrastructure projects in the rural areas to connect the longhouses and villages.