Former Iban tracker is sick in his longhouse

FIFTY nine years ago Jepit Anak Malong, 72, with other Iban trackers fought to defend the nation, but now the army veteran is fighting for his own life.

Jepit who served in the British Army between 1951 to 1952 is sick at his longhouse Rumah Panjang Pelasok, Skrang in Sri Aman Division and badly needs financial assistance.
  

He needs a wheel chair to move around as he is paralysed due to stroke.

Life is really hard for him and his blind wife, Kemban Anak Renang, 60. They have no other income except receiving RM70 monthly allowance from the Jabatan Hal Ehwal Veteran Angkatan Tentara Malaysia.

Jepit who is also suffering from other sicknesses - hepatitis and high blood pressure, alleged that he has been denied welfare assistance from the government.

He said that he had applied for welfare assistance from the Welfare Department but up to now he did not receive any form of assistance from the department.

“I have made several applications but until now there was no answer from the department,” he said.

“If others who are better off than me can get the assistance, then why can’t I? I had sacrificed to serve the nation, and the government should consider helping me, especially when I am old and unable to work,” he added.

Jepit and his wife are being taken care by their second eldest son, Thomas who is a farmer, whose income was barely enough for the family.

For his service Jepit was awarded the service medal while serving 1^st BN, The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) (Iban Platoon) in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan in 1952.

Recalling his days in service Jepit said his first attachment was with ‘A’ Company, Ist Batalion Green Howards in Malacca for four months in 1951 before joining 1^st Batallion The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) with the Iban Platoon in 1952.

Jepit has claimed that he was the recipient of the King George Cross medal but a check with the Sarawak branch of the Armed Force Veteran Department revealed that he was only awarded the service medal.

Records showed there was only one Iban tracker being awarded King George Cross medal in the person of Awang anak Rawang who served with the Iban Tracker Platoon in Johor.

Awang was awarded with the medal on Nov 20, 1951 in recognition of his bravery act in guarding injured soldiers.

The medal was created in 1940 by King George VI to recognize bravery of the highest order by civilians and (later) members of the armed forces who carried out acts of bravery while direct enemy force was not involved.

A worker from the Sarawak branch of the Armed Force Veteran Department Ismail Bin Awang Johny said Jepit like the other Iban Trackers are only entitled to receive the RM70 monthly allowance.

He said only after the proposed Armed Force Veteran Act is approved and enforced only than the allowance of those Iban Trackers and other categories of the armed force veterans could be increased.

Ismail suggested that Jepit’s wife to apply for the Welfare Department assistance.

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More than 80 families in Kampung Bumuk without electricity

KUCHING: More than 80 families in Kampung Bumbok extension are still without electricity supply.

They have been in the dark for more than 10 years now although the village is just 19 kilometres  away from the Kuching City. 

Another 30 percent out of more than 200 houses at the original Kampung Bumbok are also without the electricity supply.

These are new houses built after the second phase of the Rural Electricity Supply Scheme (RESS) extended to the village in the early 90s.

The first phase was implemented in the 70s.

“The villagers were promised several times by the government to extend RESS to these houses but up to today it remains promises,” said the village’s Development and Security Committee member, Mortima Yorke Gohe.

He said the application for the project was first forwarded to the Ministry of Public Utilities in 2000 and another four letters was forwarded in 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2008 respectively.

Motima said the replies they received from the ministry was in 2004, 2007, 2008 and August 2010 respectively but none of the letter from the Ministry of Public Utilities confirmed that the proposed project has been approved and implemented.

He said in the first letters from the Ministry of Development dated 22 December 2004 stated that the application has been received from JKKK Kampung Bumbok and has been included in the RESS list.

“The second letter received from the same ministry dated 17 April January 2007 also stated that the project will be considered for implementation under the 9^th Malaysia Plan while the third letter dated July 30, 2008  stated that the project is under consideration to be included under RESS in the 9^th Malaysia Plan,” said Mortima.

He said the fourth letter dated August 12, 2010 from the Ministry of Public Utilities stated that the proposed RESS project for the village has been put in the database of the ministry and to be considered to be implementation in 2011/2012 but depending on approval from the Ministry of Rural and Regional Development, Malaysia.

  

“There was no concrete decision on the approval of the project. It just mentioned that the application has been put in the database but did not state that the project has been approved.

“We are already tired of receiving empty promises and we really hope that this time the government will fulfill their promise to us,” said Mortima.

Mortima said the villagers urged the their representative Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister Department Tan Joo Phoi and Deputy Work Minister Datuk Yong Khoon Seng to act to bring the project to the village.

He said the villagers has to depend on generator sets for the electricity supply while students who were given laptops by the Federal Government has to charge their computer’s battery at their relatives house.

“It’s troublesome and we really hope the government extend the project to us because to extend the supply individually (not scheme) will cost a lot of money, which the villagers couldn’t afford,” he added.

To connect the supply to one house would cost more than RM7,000, said Mortima.

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Single mother, Rosmah needs assistance

By ROBERT KENNETH

KUCHING: Tears ran down her face. Her two daughters, Fasillah, 17, and Liza, 15, hugged her and cried while her three-year-old son hugged her legs, although he didn’t understand why her mother and siblings were hugging each other.

Those present were all silent, obviously sharing Rosmah’s plight and her three children.

A 41-year-old single mother, Rosmah Anak Sija was touched by the visit of Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) Supreme Council member Captain Zainuddin Tan Sri Haji Hamdan who together with the protem committee members of SPDP Mambong branch visited  the family at their depilated home at Kampung Garung, Jalan Puncak Borneo, 40 kilometer from Kuching yesterday.

Life started to be hard for Rosmah when her husband died of liver cancer in 2007. Her eldest daughter, Fallisa who was in form two then, has to leave school to take care of her younger brother while Rosmah went to work at a food stall in Mile 13^th, Jalan Puncak Borneo.

Her second daughter, Liza is now in form three at SMK Penrissen.

Rosmah said her eldest daughter had to leave school due to the hardship she and her children faced after the death of her beloved husband in 2007.

“Life was so hard for us after the death of my husband. I couldn’t afford to send my daughter to school and she has to leave school when she was in form two. Later I found myself a job at a food stall at Mile 13^th canteen (near to Institut Latihan Kesihatan).

“I need to work to earn some money to feed my three children but it was also sad that my eldest daughter had to leave school to take care of her younger brother,” Rosmah said, and wiped her tears.

She said she was paid just a little bit more than RM10 a day for working at a food’s stall, the amount barely enough for her family’s expenses.

Rosmah grows banana and some vegetables on a piece of land near her house and sell them to earn extra income for the family.

Last year Rosmah was diagnosed with breast cancer and was removed in Mac this year, but it developed again and on September 27 she will be going to the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) for the ultra sound check-up.

Rosmah said her expenses to seek treatments both at a private clinic and the Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) was too high, which she can’t afford.

“I really pity my children. They do not have enough food to eat. Most of the time we were only had tapioca leaves and wild jungle produces for lunch and dinner. I can’t afford nice food for them,” he added.

The family received RM165 monthly assistance from the Welfare Department but still that wasn’t enough to cover the high cost of living these days.

Rosmah also applied for the e-Kasih scheme but up to now she received nothing and was wondering why she did not get the assistance under the echeme.  

She thanked Capt. Zainuddin and SPDP members for their concern and cash donations presented by Capt. Zainuddin to her family.

Capt. Zainuddin said their immediate action to help reducing the family burden was to get relevant authorities assistance like the Jabatan Kemas and the Education Department.

“We will seek for funds to built Rosmah’s new house and when the money is ready the house will be built on a gotong-royong.

“I will also discuss with the party’s chairman Dato Sri William Mawan on how best the party can help the family,” he said.

The house where the Rosmah and her three children are staying in now is really in bad shape, not decent to call it a house.

He said a fund-raising dinner will be held to collect funds for the family.

Capt. Zainuddin said he will personally meet the State director of education and the minister in-charge of education in Sarawak Datin Fatimah Abdullah on how to enable Rosmah’s eledest daughter Fasillah to return back to school.

He also also called for public donation for the family, saying those intend to donate can either come straight to the family or call him at 013-3500279.

Capt. Zainuddin also pledged his personal monthly contribution to the family and will open a bank account under his name and the ATM card will be given to Rosmah to enable her to withdraw the money.

Also present during the visit was KEMAS Community Developer Tori Gerok who advised Rosmah to fill in the single mother form and apply for e-kasih scheme.

Tori promised to help Rosmah with the process and forward her application to the relevant authorities.

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Hidroelektrik hanya menguntungkan kumpulan tertentu di Sarawak

KUCHING: Ahli Parlimen Bandar Kuching Chong Chieng Jen tidak mahu sebarang empangan hidroelektrik dibina lagi di Sarawak.

Beliau yang juga setiausaha Parti Tindakan Demokratik (DAP)Sarawak menyifatkan pembinaan empangan tersebut merosakkan alam sekitar dan biodiversiti di negeri, selain hanya menguntungkan kumpulan tertentu sahaja.

Tambahan pula, katanya, empangan-empangan tersebut juga bukannya untuk mengurangkan tarif elektrik untuk perniagaan tempatan, kilang-kilang, pengguna domestik, tetapi "membekalkan elektrik dengan kadar sangat murah kepada loji peleburan".

"Pembinaan empangan hidroelektrik seumpamanya  memusnahkan hutan rimba dan habitat penduduk pribumi.

"Pengguna yang disasarkan ialah loji peleburan, yang juga merupakan industri yang paling mencemarkan alam sekitar. Kita tidak memerlukan itu," katanya dalam satu kenyataan, semalam.

Beliau berkata demikian sebagai respons kepada kenyataan Menteri Perancangan dan Pengurusan Sumber Kedua, Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan, yang dipetik berkata negeri ini memerlukan empangan hidroelektrik Bakun dan Murum bagi membekalkan elektrik kepada sebuah loji peleburan aluminium milik kumpulan tertentu.

Chong yang juga Ahli Dewan Undangan Negeri (ADUN) Kota Sentosa mendakwa konsortium itu sedang berunding dengan Syarikat SESCo Berhad bagi membekalkan kuasa elektrik pada kadar RM0.08 per kilo watt sejam (kwh) bagi loji yang dicadangkan.

Setakat ini, perniagaan tempatan, kilang dan pengguna domestik membayar kira-kira RM0.30 bagi bekalan elektrik, katanya.

"Apa yang menjadikan konsortium itu sangat istimewa sehingga membolehkan mereka menikmati kadar yang sangat rendah?

"Kenyataan Awang Tengah jelas menunjukkan bahawa bekalan elektrik yang murah dijana daripada empangan-empangan ini tidak akan memanfaatkan perniagaan tempatan, pihak industri dan juga pengguna domestik," tegasnya.

Chong berkata, untuk menjana kuasa hidroelektrik menelan modal permulaan yang sangat tinggi untuk membina empangan walaupun ia merupakan kaedah menjana elektrik yang paling murah.

Sebagai contoh, katanya, kerajaan membelanjakan berbilion ringgit unhtuki membina Empangan Bakun dan akan terus membayar faedah pinjaman untuk modal perbelanjaan bagi tempoh yang lama.

"Baru-baru ini kerajaan negeri bercakap mengenai membeli Empangan Bakun daripada kerajaan persekutuan.

"Peruntukan untuk pembelian itu akan dikeluarkan oleh penduduk Sarawak, dan semua penduduk Sarawak akan terus membayar kos kewangan untuk pembelian itu," katanya.

Justeru, beliau menyeru kerajaan negeri menghentikan rancangan untuk membina lebih banyak empangan elektrik di negeri jika projek seumpamanya membebankan rakyat dan hanya menguntungkan kumpulan tertentu.

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