Hence, the people whether they are Malays/Melanaus, Ibans, Bidayuhs, Orang Ulu and other ethnic groups all have the important task ahead to co-operate across communal lines to make ourselves real Sarawakians in the epic journey from the farms all the way to the international market, not just the local market. Sarawak will be richer by five times in the next 20 years from today. Besides, all of them have a more challenging task ahead; the task cannot be overcome by individual efforts. It is alright for people, who have been able to succeed in politics and economics to say it is o.k we have been successful and we do not depend on anybody for the future.
Perhaps, those are very sad opinions because when you have to confront bigger challenges, you will not have anybody to lean on to get added strength and expertise of development. Actually, those are the ingredients that make a community to become more powerful than when it started in a journey from the Farm to the market.
The people must realise that as early as possible because the age of individualism can in fact destroy a lot of the old initiatives, which have made a community to become very strong and powerful politically and economically.
For example, the development of SCORE is not only trying to get more money but build sufficient qualified and skilled manpower among the young people to do the jobs. The State Government has successfully secured investments totalling RM18 billion for 24 projects in Samalaju up to the year 2015.
However, the most challenging task is build sufficient skilled manpower to do the jobs as mechanics, accountants or accounting clerks, laboratory assistants, hi-tech operators and many other jobs that will come up in great numbers in years to come. The jobs at the sub-professional level will form the bulk of workers in SCORE. It is projected that 53% of the manpower in SCORE by the year 2030 will be skilled manpower upwards.
The development of SCORE will transform the State’s economy from medium income to high income economy by the year 2020 and beyond. However, the government, with the support of the people has to work very hard to make a success of it. For example, conscientious efforts must be made to inspire young people to pursue the right courses away from the old pattern ones, which will become outdated in the next five to 10 years. The Bidayuhs, who have been able to take advantage of educational opportunities, should go all out to exploit opportunities in SCORE. They should not only spread to Bintulu, Miri, Marudi but also to kapit, Bakun and other remote places in Sarawak in the near future. Obviously, the Bidayuhs have positive approach to development in the first phase of the politics of development.
Obviously, the Bidayuh community has been able to cover quite a long distance in its journey from the farms to the modern market economy. It is the journey that has taken members a long time to realise the importance of the spirit of unity and solidarity among them. It has also taught them how to harness their solidarity into some kind of positive dynamism to work for their own improvement.
Undoubtedly, the Bidayuh have made tremendous stride in the epic journey from the farm to the market in pursuit for progress and advancement. In the early 70s, Bidayuh parents played active roles in monitoring efforts to overcome problems of malnutrition among children in their areas. The program was being carried out simultaneously with the study to determine whether malnutrition was the main cause of the poor performances of children in their studies.
Undoubtedly, the Bidayuhs have many things to preserve like positive efforts that they have put in to preserve their culture, the positive attitude that they have been able to inculcate among the people to enable them to sustain their progress and safeguard their rights and interests as a community in future.
Hence, they must have a focal point to involve all leaders into some kind of dynamism of movement to make the Bidayuh solidarity more meaningful and one that could touch the lives of the young and the old alike. All of them must have roles to play in preserving the Bidayuh culture in the form of dance, folklore, song or whatever that makes their culture colourful. It is incumbent upon them to preserve all the legacies that they have inherited from their ancestors as the common cultural heritage of the society.
Chief Minister, Pehin Sri Haji Abdul Taib Mahmud, in his speech during a dinner, organised by DBNA in conjunction with Gawai Dayak and Pesta Birumuh, says DBNA could use its network and the challenge of communication to aspire young people of the community to take up technical education more aggressively so that they will not be left out in future development, the development of SCORE in particular.
He had opportunities to meet the Bidayuhs in Serian, when as the State Minister of communication and works in 1964, one of his priorities was to construct Tebekang road from Serian all the way to the border. The project road was also to build access roads to Kpg. Kakeng and other villages along the way. He could see the look of excitement in their faces as the roads helped to cut short their travelling time from their farms to markets in Kuching and other places. Lately, he has been able to observe that the community’s journey from the farm to the market has been made much easier with the realisation among members to turn their lands to become assets in a more orderly manner. At one time, native lands did not have values, nobody wanted to buy them as they were idle and surrounded by thick jungles.
However, as development moves nearer to their areas the lands start to have more values. NCR lands are being recognised as exclusive to the Natives based on the concept of the community land; the lands are owned by the community. In this case, community leaders can help to decide on boundaries among the people who have been working on the lands. They must be fair to all parties to prevent or minimise disputes among the claimants. That was how land acquisitions were being determined among the Natives.
Pehin Sri Abdul Taib believes that the Bidayuhs have the strength to move forward provided they can preserve their unity and solidarity as shown clearly in the last State elections. The Bidayuh voters showed overwhelming support to their leaders in all the six Bidayuh majority constituencies in the just concluded State elections. Hence, they were able to elect Bidayuh State Assemblymen in the State constituencies of Opar, Tasik Biru, Bengoh, Tarat, Tebedu and Kedup with bigger majority as compared with the previous elections.
He believes future of the community is bright as the members have been able to benefit from better education and have more positive approach to development among other ethnic groups in the State. However, they must be prepared to co-operate across communal lines in the common journey from the farms all the way to the international market, not just local market.
benuasains
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