Oh, please hold on. Let me share this Sarawak story. I am just getting into the local news and catching up on the Sarawak State Election where the voters comprising the registered eligible Sarawak voters who are Malaysians across the South China Sea on the Borneo Island. The current ruling state government is from the coalition parties known as National Front headed by the Chief Minister Peh Moh Taib Mahmud. His hair is really white for an old man his age and full of wisdom. He has been at the helm as the longest serving Chief Minister of a State in Malaysian history surpassing former Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Muhammad. I belief he has wisdom to know that the people from Land of the Horn-bills or Sarawak are feeling the Wind Of Change blowing strongly from around the world especially with the Political Change that swept former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak out of office, the Tunisian revolution, the Yemeni people's demonstrations and the Bahrain protests.
I have some friends living in Sarawak now, who were my former schoolmates from Perlis (a smallest and Northern-most State in the Federation of Malaysia)and some from my insurance associates whom I just met once of twice a year during Chartis Malaysia Insurance Berhad's(Formerly AIG General Insurance Company)seminars held in various parts of Malaysia.
Here are some photographs taken at the Damai Beach Resort, Kuching, Sarawak back in January 2007. I was with my group of associates and friends from AIG flying on MAS from KLIA airport. The view from the plane as we were approaching the Kuching airport was unique as it was cloudy and raining. In fact, the three days and two nights stay at Damai Beach Resort were raining dogs and cats. No wonder the Capital is called Kuching or cat in English word for the feline. I was sleepy then and I did not join the other group to venture to the round about tour of the capital for some shopping. The view of the Damai beach was spectacular but it was not a friendly welcome as we saw streaks of lightning,loud thunders and storms with strong gush of winds throwing up waves of choppy sea water. That events have edged in my mind until now.
Of course, I do remember the bumpy ride on the coach from the airport to the Damai Beach Resort and the bumpy and narrow road leading to the seafood restaurant near the river mouth facing the sea. I like the fried fern-leaves shoots in the spicy chilly and shrimp paste. The dance ladies of the night at the award presentation ceremony were young and lovely. Now four years later, I belief they have grown much prettier and wise and need not have their moms and chaperons to accompany them around for the venue. So much of the memory of Kuching. I read the news when I was a young boy and also in my primary school language book about the story of a legendary giant Crocodile named "Bujang Senang" or Easy Bachelor that had terrorized the locals at longest river in Sarawak. Many human lives and live-stocks were its victims. I was not that lucky as a Crocodile Hunter as there was no crocodile in the river when I went there. Most of the crocodiles found here are the saltwater species.
The Ibans are one of the majority ethnic people in Sarawak and living in the longhouses as what I learned in Geography in my school days. They can be further identified as Land and Sea Dayaks. At the longhouses which are built from bamboos and woods, there are many families living together and there is a headman at each longhouse. I saw in my schoolbooks where the pictures shown some human skeletons and especially the skulls were hanged and displayed within the longhouses to signify the success of their tribes in their wars as they got the scalps of their enemies. They are known as Head-Hunters. I was a little disappointed that I did not have the chance to visit the cultural village which was supposed to be an exciting event that have been lined up as part of the program for all the insurance agent participants of the seminar. That trip was canceled due to the heavy rainfall on that day. Another blessing in disguise was that I returned home to Bukit Mertajam, Penang with my head still intact.
About Head-Hunters, these days the Sarawak people are civilized society and no longer practice the head-hunting. Grandmothers and mothers always tell us children not to go out at night when the local bridges were being built or repaired as they warned and said that the builders and contractors would hunt for a head to be placed or buried beneath the bridge so that the bridge would not collapse when under construction. Really scared me and my buddies when we were very young boys. Myth or truth... I leave it to you.
The only time I knew of head-hunting going around hunting heads were when I was working in a leading bank with many branches throughout the nation including Sarawak back in the mid 1980's That era, the economy was in the doldrums and there were stories of the monies of the depositors were used to bail out some ill-shaped government linked investments. The employer hired the Head hunter whom they called "proud-foot" to hunt for the heads to chop off from the bank's payrolls. The unionized employees protested and the headhunters went back to their foreign land of origin. As we all know, there are virgin forests and beautiful beaches and caves in Sarawak. There are so many industries in Sarawak especially the natural gas and petroleum in the towns of Miri and Sibu to boost the economy. There are timber factories which created jobs for the locals.
There are a few things that still bothered me since the day I went to Kuching, Sarawak. First the state is largest in Malaysia and rich in natural resources. Yet I am appalled to note the state of the infrastructures like the small bumpy and narrow roads within 10 kilometers of the metropolitan Kuching town center are so bad and in poor condition than the ones at my little state of Perlis where I used to grow up and lived there some 28 years before being transferred by my employer to Penang. Perlis state is predominantly agricultural land and dependent on the Federal Government to finance its annual budget deficits. Even now, I belief, Perlis have better infrastructure such as roads, electricity, street lamps and water amenities than most small towns and villages in Sarawak. I was back in my former hometown the last two weekends and there was a flash flood that hit Kangar, Perlis. What happened to the treasury and management of the sovereign state of Sarawak? Why such a situation can happen after nearly 50 years of Sarawak in Malaysia. I think my friends in Sarawak better have some good answers for me since he/she have been there for many years after being posted there as teachers.
Perhaps, the previous leaders of the Sarawak state and the leaders at Federal government of Malaysia have overlooked and short-changed my fellow countrymen in Sarawak in terms of basic infrastructures, amenities, human capital, tourism and economic development. There is only one Malaysia. I have been to Kota Kinabalu, Sabah,also in 2007 and the situation there were better than the state of Sarawak slightly. Malaysians leadership have to wake up from the slumber as people are now very intelligent. Where have the natural resources contributions from Sarawak gone to finance what projects in Malaysia that the Sarawak state is still under-developed as compared to other states in the federation, and not at par with Perlis? Why is it so imbalance?
Why is there a restriction on some fellow Malaysians from the Peninsular to visit the Sarawak State? Do we have two countries system within One Malaysia? How to have the Association of South East Asian Nations(ASEAN) model after the EU where its citizens from members countries are mobile and free to travel within its member countries, whilst in our own beloved 1 Malaysia, we have two standards? We may know our enemies from within better than the foreigners which are unknown elements of threats to our country's safety and security. Some foreign illegal workers, migrants or terrorists could be traveling to our country and we failed to monitor and to refuse their entry. Sometimes, we champions the freedoms and rights of leaders like Nobel Peace Prize winner, Madam Aung San Suu Kyi from Myanmar whilst we penalized our own countrymen who are peace and loving people like any other ordinary free Malaysians. Don't know why?
I guess the witch-hunting is all over because there are many Ibans who have converted to Christianity and other religions. There were inter-marriages too among the various ethnics and Malaysians. I have known many church friends from Sarawak, Sabah and some Indonesians worshiping at Bukit Mertajam Baptist Church (BMBC) as most of them have came over or migrated to Peninsular Malaysia for their works and economic reasons. Their steadfast love for God or "Allah' in Holy Bible is bringing them to church here even though they may be far from home and other family members. God's family is one and He loves everyone. So do come to BMBC if you want to join the worship in the Malay language on Sunday Service at 2.30p.m. every Sunday except advance notice of changes by the Pastoral team. If you are from Sarawak and Sabah, we welcome you and family. By the way, my friends are helping to support the Seratok Baptist Church outreach. Anyone wants to offer help?
So come April 16, 2011, the polling day at Sarawak, let us hope the Sarawak voters will choose wisely. May the leaderships chosen by them must change from making the same the past mistakes and hold on to the true love for fellow Malaysians and passionately love the people and to serve the people first. Leaders, do not be predators like the legendary crocodile but be like sacrificial lambs ready to be sacrificed for the Glory of God or Allah and to serve His people. Let everyone know that God is Supreme Head of our government and the King of Kings and He is the God or Allah for all Mankind family whether we live in Sarawak or Sabah or Peninsular Malaysia or in the Spratly Islands of Malaysian jurisdiction.
Anyway, let us listen to some music from singer Anita Sarawak when we relax and wait for the election results.
