KUCHING: The federal government is urged to give priority to the rural areas in Sarawak during the presentation of the 2023 Budget, which is expected to be held on October 7, said Datuk Seri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
The Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts said that the rural areas of Sarawak still need economic shifts and better infrastructure to help improve what had been implemented under the Sarawak government.
He expressed optimism that the budget will give priority to rural areas because there are still many people who need infrastructure and economic transformation through the budget apart from what is undertaken by the state government.
He said this when asked to comment on the 2023 Budget during a press conference for the 2022 Batang Kayan Regatta Festival Programme at Lundu Waterfront yesterday.
Abdul Karim said nothing is more important than stressing on the well-being of the people in the 2023 Budget as he believes that Sarawak as the largest state will require bigger allocations to carry out overall development.
“I will not be able to intervene but I believe that as the largest and most extensive state, Sarawak needs a relatively large budget to develop the entire state.
“We can’t compare Sarawak to Perlis and Malacca as we are different and incomparable,” he said.
