Adenan: 'West Malaysia issues' no impact in Sarawak

PETALING JAYA: Current issues that are hotly debated in West Malaysia will not have a significant impact on the Sarawak elections due in April, said Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem (pic).

He said the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) and RM2.6bil political donation have nothing to do with Sarawak.

"I don't even know what exactly is going on there," Adenan said in an interview with Sin Chew Daily.

"The opposition always associate these issues with Sarawak, arguing that supporting Adenan is akin to supporting Najib (Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak)," said Adenan.

"As a matter of fact, these issues have nothing to do with Sarawak, or me, in any way," he said.

Adenan said he wanted to be a chief minister for all Sarawakians irrespective of race and religion, and everyone must be treated equally and with respect, including the indigenous people.

He said he was very unhappy that some Sarawakians had not been accorded equal treatment by the Federal government.

"We are different from West Malaysia. Here we have many different ethnic groups but we are all equal. My policies involve all ethnic groups in the state, not any particular one," he said.

On the state government's recognition of the Unified Examinations Certificate (UEC), as well as the increased allocations for Chinese schools, Adenan stressed that it was not a political gimmick for the sake of the election.

He said these schools had made significant contributions towards the well-being of the people in the state, providing them with high quality education, not just for the Chinese but the indigenous people as well.

"The Federal government never wanted to recognise UEC. That's their business. We in Sarawak recognise UEC and allow UEC holders to apply for civil service jobs and scholarships," said Adenan.

He admitted that independent Chinese high schools have often been overlooked by the Federal government and as such, the Sarawak state government was willing to help by increasing the allocation from RM3mil to RM4mil and RM5mil next.

On the spate of people from West Malaysia barred from entering Sarawak, Adenan admitted that the state government has a list of those stopped from entering the state.

"We have such a list. Those barred from entering the state are people unfamiliar with the conditions here and we don't want them to wreak havoc to the state," said Adenan.

He said the state had been practicing this policy for years and would continue to do so to prohibit problematic individuals - including those from political parties, religious organisations and NGOs.

He said Sarawakians could take care of and run the state themselves and as such would not want the intervention from West Malaysian parties such as Umno and DAP.