24 July 2024
On Today Show
— Tr. Panting ak Baling, Head of Sg Agricultural Heritage Village. Batin Similajau – Bintulu – From Detention to Defiance: The Villagers' Struggle for Their Farm Land
— Nicholas Mujah, the general secretary of SADIA – Land Encroachment and Rights Violations in Sarawak
— Professor Dr. Madeline Berma, Dayak Sarawakian economist – Economic Gains, Living Pain
— Paul Wan from Long Lama – Cronies Prosper, People Lag: The Dual Reality of Development in Sarawak
Topik Pada Hari Ini
— Tr. Panting ak Baling, Ketua Kampung Warisan Pertanian Sg. Batin Similajau – Bintulu – Dari Penahanan ke Pembangkangan: Pertarungan Penduduk Kampung untuk Tanah Pertanian Mereka
— Nicholas Mujah, Setiausaha Agung SADIA – Pencerobohan Tanah dan Pelanggaran Hak di Sarawak
— Profesor Dr. Madeline Berma, Ekonom Dayak Sarawak – Kelebihan Ekonomi, Kesakitan Hidup
— Paul Wan dari Long Lama – Kroni Makmur, Rakyat Ketinggalan: Realiti Dua Dimensi Pembangunan di Sarawak
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Special Randau
1. People were driven from their own garden land solely for the expansion of Similajau National Park in Bintulu. What are the rights of the people in a free country? People have basic rights, people should be given space to develop themselves and be treated fairly by the law. Special rfs interview with the head of the Batin river agricultural heritage village, Bintulu.2. The legal body brought the DNAA case of deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi to the Court of Appeal. Last year the high court acquitted Zahid with the DNAA decision in the Akalbudi Foundation corruption case and on June 27 the high court rejected a judicial review related to the case and now the Malaysian Bar Association appealed to the Court of Appeal to challenge the Attorney General's decision to retract the corruption involving Zahid Hamidi.
3. The DOJ reached an agreement with Jasmine Loo to get back Picasso paintings and financial accounts in Switzerland linked to funds allegedly embezzled from 1MDB.
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Tr. Panting ak Baling, Head of Sg Agricultural Heritage Village. Batin Similajau - Bintulu.
From Detention to Defiance: The Villagers' Struggle for Their Farm Land
Panting informed that Jalani and his wife were detained by SFC enforcement officers for entering their garden to collect palm oil and coffee beans. While they were working, they were surprised when SFC enforcers arrested them and took them to the SFC HQ. The villagers gathered in large numbers to exert pressure so that the SFC enforcers would release Jalani and his wife. Their efforts were successful, and Jalani and his wife were later released. However, when they brought Jalani to make a police report about the incident, he looked scared and did not dare to speak. Efforts to make a report failed because he was scared and seemed to lose his memory. Therefore, Tr. Panting, as the head of the village, made a police report and informed that the villagers would enter their farm land to collect agricultural produce, such as harvesting palm oil and coffee.
Additionally, the villagers have been banned from entering their farms since April 2024, and now they have no other way to obtain economic resources or buy food for the children at home. During the interview with the head of Panting village, an SFC patrol car with seven members arrived and warned the villagers to stop working. However, the residents ignored the warning and continued to work. The SFC cut down some oil palm trees to prevent residents from taking out their agricultural produce, but the residents still managed to bring their agricultural produce out using several other roads. The villagers are unsure of what actions the SFC will take next.
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Nicholas Mujah, the general secretary of SADIA
Land Encroachment and Rights Violations in Sarawak
Nicholas Mujahh reported that SADIA has been quite busy lately with many cases involving rights violations, land encroachment, and logging in several parts of Sarawak. However, in an interview with RFS today, Mujah described the case of the arrest of Jalani and his wife by the SFC that happened yesterday. Jalani and his wife are accused of encroaching on the national park area of Bintulu. Jalani and his wife are residents of the agricultural heritage village of Batin Samalaju River. They have worked together with more than 100 other families on palm oil and coffee plantations near Samalaju National Park. During the administration of Chief Minister Adenan Satem, the village community officially applied for the zoning of the village area and the plantation area they have worked on. In principle, Adenan agreed and ordered the land office to measure and issue maps and land titles to residents. Correspondence related to the application is kept by the village head, Tr. Panting and Baling.
However, since a year ago, the SFC has issued an order for residents to vacate the village and farm area because the area is included in the Samalaju National Park expansion. Residents feel sad and cheated, questioning why Adenan allowed it but during the administration of Prime Minister Johari Openg, the permission was withdrawn. According to Mujah, the implementation of government plans, such as the expansion of national parks, should also take into account human rights and the agreement that was made with Chief Minister Adenan Satem. The SFC cannot arbitrarily violate and evict villagers who have engaged in agriculture that provides them with income to support their families. Jalani and his wife were arrested and taken to the SFC HQ in Similajau. Aware of the incident, the villagers gathered en masse in front of the SFC office and pressured the authorities to release Jalani and his wife. By 5 pm, Jalani and his wife were released, and a police report was made regarding the incident.
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Professor Dr. Madeline Berma, Dayak Sarawakian economist
Economic Gains, Living Pain
Malaysia’s economy is heading in the right direction, but this will not alleviate the high cost of living, economists said. The Statistics Department reported that Malaysia’s GDP is expected to expand by 5.8% in the second quarter of 2024, which economists view as a positive sign for the economy.
Datuk Madeline Burma commented that the cost of living issue is very stressful because it is a very real concern. Some people say it is a political game. Datuk Madeline Burma, an economist who frequently conducts research, explained that there are two kinds of economy: macroeconomy and microeconomy.
Macro is about the world or a country like Malaysia, and it involves large indicators such as GDP and production index. Microeconomy pertains to individual actions, such as small-scale shopping.
She stated that while indicators like GDP are good economic values and show that we are monitoring economic growth, they do not necessarily reflect the real situation of individual costs. The ministers are eager to present macroeconomic data, showing that our economy is growing. Premier Snang Jo proudly announces our growing economy, which is true. However, despite our economic growth, the people suffer the most because the cost of living remains consistently high. This is because economic growth is not equivalent to a reduction in living costs.
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Paul Wan from Long Lama
Cronies Prosper, People Lag: The Dual Reality of Development in Sarawak
Paul Wan from Long Lama is the grandson of one of the co-founders of PBB (Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu), Temenggong Oyong Lawai Jau.
However, since BN (Barisan Nasional) took over PBB before it was renamed GPS (Gabungan Parti Sarawak), the name PBB has been tarnished by the Chief Minister of Sarawak, from Taib Mahmud to the current leadership. Dato Temenggong Oyong Lawai Jau was also one of the signatories of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) when it was signed in 1963.
However, MA63 was not upheld by PBB GPS for 60 years until PMX DSAI (Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim) became the Prime Minister, and MA63 has been progressively revived.
In conclusion, while the cronies have been developed, the overall rakyat (people) still lag behind in terms of development.