KUCHING: Sabah and Sarawak must emulate Singapore’s approach in developing its human capital, said Dr Arnold Puyok.
In stating this, the Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities (FSSH) deputy dean pointed out that unlike Sabah and Sarawak, Singapore does not have its own natural resources.
“Nevertheless, Singapore managed to be a developed country with its commitment to their governance and by sending their best people to the best universities around the world.
“And for this, I believe that the states could also be as developed as Singapore because the diversity of population that we have can be used as the catalyst.
“This is because being multiracial and multiculturalism is often associated with being skilled in various fields,” he said during the Politik Sabah dan Sarawak Dalam Konteks Hubungan Persekutuan – Negeri, (2008 – 2021) online webinar on today (June 7).
Furthermore, he stated that the natural resources of both Sabah and Sarawak could also be used as an added advantage for it to be on par with those of developed countries.
“However, we lack the management that is capable and professional enough in managing the available natural resources that we have.
“If we look into it politically, both of the states are rich in oil and gas resources. Unfortunately, they are not well managed,” he said.
Due to this, he added that the wealth from the natural resources that should be felt from the building of the infrastructure, roads, etc could not be felt by those from the grassroots level.
“That is why I believe that if both Saban and Sarawak were to have good management over the natural resources and good governance, they will surely be able to move forward to be more developed,” he said.
