KUCHING: Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas has hit out at social media postings accusing the government of not being sympathetic towards the smallholders in the state.
He said they were far from the truth.
“The government is just as mindful of the hardship faced by the state smallholders affected by the current drop in the prices of primary commodities,” he pointed out, saying that this was evident in its allocation of RM265 million to help them.
In comparison, Uggah, who is also Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development Minister, said the government was only giving a sum of RM29.1 million to assist fishermen in the state during the ‘landas’ season.
“So I hope people will look at the situation with a fair mind and not be overly negative, biased or emotional.”
He explained that the amount under the Agriculture Facilitation Fund (AFF) was part of the total sum of RM767 million allocated to the Agriculture Sector under the State 2020 Budget as announced by Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg on Monday.
“It will be utilised to finance various income diversification programmes on equipment and infrastructure support and others.
“This is our initiative to help the smallholders, the majority of whom are natives affected by the drop in the prices of oil palm, rubber and pepper,” he said.
With this fund, they would not be prompted to abandon or neglect their farms.
Meanwhile, during the weekend, Uggah managed to visit the sites of three major projects being implemented in Spaoh, Betong which is part of his Bukit Saban state constituency.
They included the RM14 million Spaoh Sports Complex (inclusive of land acquisition cost), the RM6.4 million Spaoh Waterfront project and the RM5 million Spaoh Agriculture Office.
Accompanying him during the visit were a political secretary to the Chief Minister Dr Richard Rapu and secretary of the Betong District Council Charlie Keling.
