Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan (left) looking through his winding-up speech with Deputy Natural Resources and Urban Development Minister Datuk Len Talif Salleh at the state legislative assembly on Thursday (Dec 1). - ZULAZHAR SHEBLEE / The Star
KUCHING: Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) fully supports and will work closely with the national unity government to ensure political stability, social harmony and economic prosperity for Malaysia, says Sarawak Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan.
He said the nation has seen enough politicking and it was now time for reconciliation and healing.
"Now is the time for Malaysia to move on," he said in his winding-up speech at the Sarawak Legislative Assembly on Thursday (Dec 1).
Awang Tengah called on the new government to be more sympathetic and fairer to Sarawak by returning the state's rights as enshrined in the Federal Constitution, Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) report.
He added that the new government must provide more funds to Sarawak to close the development gap with Peninsular Malaysia.
"We will never be able to catch up if the Federal Government continues to allocate only about 5% of the national development budget to Sarawak. This is grossly unjustifiable," he said.
Awang Tengah said a bigger allocation was needed for infrastructure and basic amenities as well as education, health and security facilities.
More funds were also required for developing industrial estates and business premises and to enhance socioeconomic and poverty eradication programmes, he said.
"Don't be like the previous Pakatan Harapan administration, which cancelled projects and did not fulfil its manifesto promises. I hope the new government will learn a lesson from this previous experience," Awang Tengah added.
