KOTA KINABALU, April 20 — The Madani government is committed to eradicating hardcore poverty in Sabah despite knowing the situation is quite complicated to resolve, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
In this regard, the Prime Minister believes that the close relationship between the federal government led by him and the Sabah government led by Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor can play an important role in realising that wish.
He said efforts should be made to attract and bring in more investment, as well as implement various initiatives to attract more tourists to Sabah and further drive the economy in the state.
“We want to drive growth, we want investments to come, for our hotels to be full of tourists…we have a moral responsibility to be tough to eradicate in the country, including in Sabah itself,” he said when speaking at the national Madani 2024 Aidilfitri Celebration, here today.
The event was officiated by Sabah Governor Tun Juhar Mahiruddin and it was also attended by Deputy Prime Ministers Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof as well as Hajiji.
Anwar said hardcore poverty in Sabah had been successfully reduced to about 11,000 heads of households in the state and he had also mobilised government machinery including the Implementation Coordination Unit (ICU) of the Prime Minister’s Department to further reduce that number in a short period of time.
“Thank you to the Chief Minister (Hajiji) and the state government because the number was achieved convincingly, I believe in this short time we can reduce it and if possible to wipe out (the hardcore poor),” he said.
He said hardcore poverty in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka, Johor, Perak and Penang had been successfully eradicated, and he believed that with measures taken, extreme poverty in Sabah would also be eradicated.
“The problem (of the hardcore poverty in Sabah is more complicated with the arrival and intrusion in the border area, but I believe in giving full support to the state government under Hajiji to solve this problem together with the federal government,” he said.
The Prime Minister said that in the effort to develop Sabah and other states, efforts to ensure that every project for the people can be carried out effectively cannot only be done from Putrajaya alone but instead requires information, feedback and views from the state itself.
“We have identified the problems of flooding, water, potholes, the Pan Borneo (Highway), electricity supply, lack of schools, all of which have been expressed and we took note. This is the spirit of the Madani government to listen and implement as well as possible,” said the Prime Minister.
Earlier, Anwar attended a briefing on Sabah state development at Menara Kinabalu, here.
Anwar, who arrived at 10.13am, was accompanied by Hajiji and Deputy Chief Ministers Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan, Datuk Dr Joachim Gunsalam and Datuk Shahelmey Yahya.
Also present at the briefing was Fadillah, who is also the Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister, and federal cabinet ministers.
The briefing, which lasted about one and a half hours, was delivered by State Secretary Datuk Seri Safar Untong, and it was also attended by heads of state and federal departments, government agencies and government-related companies.
Anwar, who is also the Parti Keadilan Rakyat (Keadilan) president, had also earlier attended a special meeting with the Sabah Keadilan State Leadership Council (MPN).
Yesterday, the special plane carrying Anwar arrived at Terminal Two, Kota Kinabalu International Airport, at 11.40pm, and he is scheduled to depart for Kuala Lumpur this afternoon.
— Bernama
