KUCHING: Julau Member of Parliament Larry Sng wants to know why many Sarawakians are going out of Malaysia to find jobs elsewhere.
“Could it be due to the absence of quality jobs in Sarawak that the number of Sarawakians looking for sustenance abroad reaches up to thousands of people?” he asked during his debate speech during the Parliament sitting in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
“I am raising this issue as a statement of my concern about the poverty of the people in Sarawak,” he stressed.
He referred to the detention of 47 Malaysians, including 40 Sarawakians, in Cambodia on Dec 16, 2018 and the case of another eight Sarawakians who were stranded in Liberia because they were cheated by a job scam syndicate.
Sng went on to thank the Foreign Affairs Minister for his quick actions in the negotiations with the Cambodian government which resulted in the release of the detained Malaysians on Feb 15.
“I ask for the detention of 47 Malaysians not be politicised because it has been well resolved with the Cambodian government,” he said.
In his debate, Sng also asked Rural and Regional Development Minister Rina Harun to confirm the report on Feb 1 that Pakan was the poorest district in Malaysia.
“I also welcome the minister’s announcement that the 28 poorest districts will be given special focus by the federal government for the implementation of socio-economic development programmes.
“I ask the Minister to state the projects and the amount of allocations from the federal government. I also urge the federal government to closely monitor the implementation of socioeconomic development projects in order to avoid misappropriation and leakage,” he said.
Sng also proposed that the federal government ban artificial trans fat as recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
“This move is particularly appropriate given that 47.7 per cent of Malaysians aged 18 years suffers from high cholesterol levels, a sharp increase compared to the 32.6 per cent level in 2011,” he pointed out.
Citing WHO, he said trans fatty acids caused more than 500,000 deaths due to cardiovascular disease each year.
“I believe this move can improve the health of Malaysians,” added Sng.
