Media Statement

by  Violet Yong

(Kuching, Saturday): SUPP publicity machinery has started to distribute their leaflets on oil price hike but it is just another sign of their blatant denial, negligence and losing touch with the feelings and concerns of the grounds.

The people are angry and outraged b the latest oil price hike, not so much because there had to be an increase, but by the timing, manner and amount of the increase, and most important of all, by the loss of moral authority and legitimacy of the government to cal on the people to make “lifestyle change: and “sacrifices” because of its failure to deliver a clean, incorruptible, transparent and efficient public service.

BN is fuelling anger when their leaders are leading luxurious life at the expenses of the rakyat while keep calling the people to “discard subsidy mentality”. They seems to have lost touch with the ground as if they totally do not understand that they have long lost the legitimacy to make such calls.

It is also questionable that whether the rakyat really benefit from the improvement in public transportation system of development projects from the RM 4.4 billion of savings in fuel subsidies. When the fuel price was increased from RM 1.37 to RM 1.92 per litre for petrol and RM 0.78 to RM 1.58 per litre for diesel since May 2004, billions of ringgit were saved in fuel subsidies. However, the people do not see any benefit from development s projects or improvement in public transport.

SUPP claimed that the state government will improve public transportation system, i.e. buses, lorries, and inland transportations system, but it is proven that road development index in Sarawak is the lowest in Malaysia.

Table 18-1 of Ninth Malaysia Plan shows that       Road Development Index (RDI) of Sarawak is the lowest.  A mere 0.38 in 2005.  The second worst RDI was Kelantan 0.6, 50% better than Sarawak.  Even Sabah is 3 times better than Sarawak, 1.10 RDI.

If one talks about road density, i.e. measures road lane length over the total area, the figure is even more shockingly disfavouring Sarawak.  Sarawak’s road density index is 0.05 in 2005 while the second worst was Sabah 0.15, 3 times better than Sarawak.  The Road Density Index for Wilayah Persekutuan in 2005 was 3.67, more than 70 times denser than Sarawak. Even the PAS ruled Kelantan is 0.19, almost 4 times better than Sarawak.

From 2000 to 2005, Sabah increased by more than 5,000 kilometres of roads while Sarawak only increased by 243 kilometers of roads.

What is installed for the construction of roads in Sarawak under RMK9?  Nothing much. 

Moreover, BN MPs themselves are subsidy MPs in a subsidy generation. They get annual RM 500,000 constituency development allocations which are denied to Opposition MPs. If this money are not sourced from the rakyat, where else do they get the monet? It is always the Opposition that manage to voice out for the people either in Parliament or State Assembly Hall.

“ENOUGH IS ENOUGH”