The construction of RM27 billion Pan Borneo Highway has generated a lot of interest, especially among members of the Dayak community who feel that they should have a share in its construction.

 

The contract works for the Sarawakian sector of the project have been awarded to a Sarawak-based company Lebuhraya Borneo Utara Sdn Bhd.

 

The first phase of the highway was launched by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak in Bintulu last month.

 

The 1,663km road will pass through the interior of Sarawak from Lawas to Lundu ( right ), where the majority of the Dayaks live. The Dayaks form about 50 percent of the population, which is 2.6 million.

 

Following the launch, the Dayak Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) and several Dayak non-governmental organisations urged the government to give 30 percent of contracts to Dayak businesses.

 

In a recent meeting attended by about 100 members, DCCI had adopted a resolution calling on the government to appoint suitably qualified Dayaks to sit on the management boards or the technical committees of Lebuhraya Borneo Utara, Sarawak Energy Berhad (SEB), and Regional Corridor Development Authority (Recoda).

 

The move was needed in order to monitor Dayak interests and their participation in the huge projects undertaken by these three entities.

 

‘Dayaks interested in these projects’

 

In supporting the call, the Sarawak Dayak Graduate Association said that the request was fair as the Dayaks have not been given a fair share of contracts in the state.

 

Failure to do so will bring about “negative impact and bad perception by the Dayak community on the federal government,” said its president Dusit Jaul.

 

The Dayak National Congress said that the community must ask for their rightful share of economic development.

 

“We have to ask, and whether the federal government would accede to our request or not is another matter,” said its president Mengga Mikui ( left ).

 

Mengga, who has retired from his general manager post in the Sarawak Forest Corporation and is now a businessman, said the queries show “we are also interested in those projects.”

 

Standing behind DCCI’s call, Barisan Iban Sarawak (Bisa) said that the Dayak community had for the past 50 years been sidelined in government contracts despite their forefathers being on the frontline in the formation of Malaysia.

 

“It is high time, therefore, that we should also be considered by the government for various contracts projects in the Pan Borneo Highway, the construction of hydroelectric dams, and the regional corridor development authority,” said Bisa president Peter John Jaban.

 

The Kuching branch of Sarawak Dayak Iban Association (Sadia) chairperson Anthony Nait said that the Dayak businessmen should be given a chance to participate in the economic development of the State.

 

“Neglecting them could be a social problem that may affect the security of the country,” Nait pointed out.

 

‘Dayaks and Chinese sidelined’

 

Contacted for their comments, a few Sarawak political parties also echoed the call.

 

The Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party said the issue of Dayak participation in the economic and business sectors and in the construction of the Pan Borneo Highway will be discussed during its supreme council meeting tomorrow.

 

Meanwhile, Sarawak DAP pointed out that while the contract may have been given to a company based in the state, all seven directors in Lebuhraya Borneo Utara Sdn Bhd are Malays.

 

State DAP chief Chong Chieng Jen ( right ) said the shareholders are Maltimur Resources Sdn Bhd (Sarawak) which owned 55 percent of the shares, and Jalinan Rejang Sdn Bhd (West Malaysia) which owned the remaining 45 percent.

 

Apart from the Dayaks, it pointed out that the Chinese community too has been sidelined in the project.

 

“All the shareholders and directors of LBU and both the shareholding companies are 100 percent Malays and not even a single Dayak or Chinese is a shareholder or a director of these companies,” said Chong, who is the MP for Bandar Kuching and state assemblyperson for Kota Sentosa.