Received my copies of Right To Land Right To Heritage from the Malaysian Environmental NGOs today. Two of our ancestral pua kumbu was included as pictorial in the publication. Get your copy from MENGO now.
JAMESJG.COM would like to thanks Dr.Sundari Ramakrishna of MENGO Support Unit, and Eleanor Chen, the Consultant Editor for EcoLogical footPrints for featuring the Iban pua.
by Abdul Hakim Bujang
SarawakUPdate.com
In the land named Malaya a tiny adjustment of bus fare during festive season will trigger a free for all in prime time news.
Here on this soil named Sarawak, the biggest celebration is probably Gawai Dayak, and the business community would be feasting on the poor consumers. The preying on customer will be a bigger occasion, much merrier than Gawai itself.
Where are the native champion?
No by election. So all the boisterous native champion have gone back to enjoy their big salaries, comfortable life and chauffeured in brand new cars – of course courtesy of the government – Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat, alike.
I doubt the UMNO sponsored and PR financed bloggers would be bothered to investigate the real problem faced by the natives as the mad rush for votes had stopped.
By the way, where are the concern activist of Pakatan Rakyat not going on the ground the way they did during by election? Where are the Barisan Nasional youth? Now is the time for you to do something for the small people and kick these irresponsible people in the butt. You promised to serve the Rakyat right, or simply want to bodek Anwar Ibrahim and Mohd Najib only?
Where are CVLB and RTD officers?
I cannot blame Ong Tee Keat, because he is probably very worried on his status now that he will not be able to perform his duty as Transport Minister. I cannot blamed god for taking the Deputy Transport Minister prior to Gawai. I think our Prime Minister had to do something.
Early this morning, my good friend called from Miri. He said the cashier of Freesia (bus company) demanded him to pay RM90 for each ticket from Miri to Saratok although the published fare was RM72 per person.
When asked about it, the girl (at the counter) said the new rate was approved by the bus taukeh. Who needs Minister to approve a fare hike in Sarawak?
I am not making up this story. There is no need for me to make an SD. I have very reliable source. I am sure Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB) chairman and Road Transport Department (RTD) will say I am just creating rumours.
Since they are likely to say that I was making a wild assumption, so let me name my source as James Joshua Guang, an EXCO of Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) youth movement.
James said Freesia is not the only bus company doing that but want RTD to send officers incognito to find out whether the problem also affect other poor travellers wishing to celebrate Gawai at their respective village.
“Customers should be refunded immediately,” James demanded.
Only the poor, and not very rich will be taking bus home. The rich definitely will fly home using helicopter or driven in huge SUV. The average Joe and family probably will driving their own car home.
I have called up a long lost friend Mohd Shaani Abdullah of National Consumers Complaint Centre and I am sure he will help us to address this issue. We believed that Saratok bus fare is just the tip of the iceberg, and its time for Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat activist to go down and talk to Rakyat. Now!
* The writer is considering to register SarawakUpdate.com in Kalimantan because we are not allowed to use Sarawak name in our trade license when trying to register this morning. The Lembaga Hasil Dalam Negeri staff at the counter no 4 is without name tag and need serious SMILING training. Not so many people but the face as if having to entertain three million customer in five hours.
Taman Jelita Phase III is almost completed. The contractors are currently installing the toilet bowl and washing basin. The main electrical cable and water supply to the area has been done too. Here are some shots.
Behind those trees in the background is the airport runway.
View of SMK Taman Tunku
Corner lot of Taman Jelita Ph.III
by Sidi Munan
April 25, 2010, Sunday
Source: Sunday Post
APRIL, for several hundred longhouse and village chiefs from all districts, has been a busy month indeed.
The seminars organised by the Housing and Urban Development Ministry to discuss the proposed New Longhouse Concept have kept them occupied in town.
However, for the many townies — those with close connections with the longhouses or villages, some even owning a room (bilik) or house there — the whole exercise was a curiosity.
While they did not expect to be invited to the seminars because there wouldn’t have been enough room for everybody, they would have liked to learn about the new concept if only they had the chance to attend, say, a public forum on it.
They only read about it in the media; even the statements from several political personalities who should have known better were not helpful to their understanding of the concept.
Not that their city cousins underrate the ability and the intelligence of their respective Tuai Rumah who attended those talks but that they — working, studying or living in the city — could have contributed new ideas too.
Those working for insurance companies may have ideas about fire cover; the architects or engineers have some comments on the model of the new longhouse. Those from the Fire Department may also have advice on fire prevention.
Some members of the local Advocates Association may be interested in the technicalities of the registration of title.
Among the Dayak Community there are a number of these people — professionals as well as individuals with vast experience of life in the longhouse as well as outside it.
As a result of the scarcity of information available to them, the curiosity has developed into an anxiety, raising more questions than answers.
Even without the benefit of seeing the actual model, there will be no disagreement over the new concept if most of the security and health features and are provided for — the firebreaks, fire extinguishers, fire resistant materials, ventilation, etc.
That the new longhouse will be fitted with modern facilities is not in doubt, if the ministry of housing is involved in its supervision and loan processing.
What requires further clarification, however, is in respect of the issuance of the title to land on which the longhouse stands.
Questions range from:
The proposal has got mixed reactions. One Penghulu, Michael Derin, was reported to have expressed his reservation to The Borneo Post (April 9). In his own words, “For example, some people might mortgage their land. If it is for a good cause such as paying for their children’s education, it is okay. But what about those who don’t manage their money well? If they fail to pay back their loans, their land could be taken from them.”
In a worse case scenario like this, is there any mechanism — an insurance device — whereby the debt in respect of the particular bilik is underwritten through something like First Premium payment should something dreadful happen (death, incapacity, loss of earning) to the loanee within the next five to 10 years? This is to avoid legal complications such as the foreclosure.
Are the insurers prepared to cover fire risks?
In the existing longhouse there exist the bilik rights enjoyed by the owner(s) of the bilik.
What happens if the ownership changes hands as in the case of a foreclosure by a financial institution, or an attachment by a private moneylender?
Is there a mechanism, a deal of sorts, in this worse case scenario whereby the debt is somehow written off so that the bilik rights are intact?
Otherwise, the bilik owner loses all his or her rights and interests in that property. To that extent the power of the TR as custodian of land is being undermined; worse the house may literally break up. The new owner may be somebody else or a body corporate.
In the case of several people in the bilik, under whose name shall the property be registered?
Ownership of the certificate of title to land is always one of the most valuable possessions anyone is proud to keep. It is a property registered in your name. Under the provisions of the Land Code 1958, as a registered proprietor, you can do what you like with it, subject to the conditions of the title — Mixed Zone (MZ) or Native Area Land (NAL) or any other restrictions imposed by the issuing authority.
It is normal for the issuing authority to impose certain restrictions on dealings with land: no transfer within a specified time without the consent of the Director of Land and Survey.
It appears that only the dwellers of the new longhouse with the title in hand are eligible to participate in the Rumah Mesra Rakyat programme, a scheme to solve housing problems for the poor members of the country. If this condition is not relaxed, this particular programme is not for them. There must be devised some other scheme to cater for their needs, just so that they have a decent roof above their heads.
One ketua masyarakat, such as KK Jiku Nader of Entingan, would welcome the issuance of title to land on which individual house stands, as well; in fact hundreds of titles have been issued to villagers in the Kampung Tradisi in Kuching and elsewhere.
His proposal merits consideration but the main discussions at the seminars revolved around the brand new longhouses.
I have seen these in many longhouses around their compounds. They are owned by the extended families or even by newcomers. Are they to be given title in respect of their land too?
The long and the short of it is that the new concept of the longhouse should be further discussed by as many people as possible so that some kind of consensus is arrived at.
Over any new idea, expect no 100 per cent agreement on all aspects of it; so it is with the concept in question.
Accept criticisms as a fact of life and recognise scepticism as part of human nature.
Since ‘Seeing is Believing’, a couple of model longhouses should be built somewhere to prove that the concept works.
Try one on alienated land (government given) and the other on land claimed by native owners and see what happens.
Nothing succeeds like success.
My position on the longhouse concept, old or new, remains that I prefer individual or single houses. The longhouse fires happening with regular frequencies have a major bearing on my choice of houses.
The moon at age 5.5 days of the 3rd moon 2010, and, that’s about 31% to the next full moon. To do your own lunar tracking on your Windowsmobile, download Deluxe Moon for free.
