Dayak chamber seeks Najib's help

Najib Abdul Razak met briefly with officials of the Dayak Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) in Kuching yesterday and heard requests for more government assistance for the Dayak business community.

At a 40-minute breakfast meeting with DCCI president Leo Moggie, who is also Tenaga Nasional chairperson, and his committee, the deputy premier was told that the chamber is not a political organisation or has any political motives, as some people have alleged, but is only interested in promoting Dayak business interests.

The on-off-on meeting was at the chamber’s initiatives and intended to convey to Najib some of the problems the Dayak business community are encountering and the need to raise the level of participation in commerce and industry.

“The present level of participation in commerce and industry of the Dayak community is still very low,” DCCI vice-president Kilat Beriak, who also heads the chamber’s business development committee, told Malaysiakini.

Moggie took over as DCCI chief from a successful Iban businessman Leonard Linggi Jugah, who had helmed the chamber since its inception in 2003.

Kilat revealed that Najib’s reaction to the comments and suggestions from the chamber was very positive.

DCCI adviser Linggi also informed Malaysiakini that the chamber produced statistics to support their requests to the government for more assistance.

He also said the DPM seemed well informed about the issues at hand and the current predicament faced by the chamber.

Linggi, a former state minister, said he and another senior Dayak leader Celestine Ujang also took the opportunity to explain to Najib that the chamber is not against the state government nor is it a political organisation.

NCR issue also raised

Later, Najib told reporters he appreciated the concerns raised by the Dayak business community and promised to bring them to the attention of state and federal authorities.

Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud and Deputy Chief Minister Alfred Jabu were not present at the breakfast meeting. However, another Deputy Chief Minister Dr George Chan was present.

The chamber also raised the issue of NCR land being an important asset that could be used for the Dayaks to do business, but before this could be done, the land must be properly surveyed and dilienated so that titles could be issued and used for mortgages to raise bank loans.

Moggie said the NCR land issue was raised solely from the point of view of business as it was an important asset for the Dayak community.

Sarawak has three million acres of NCR land of which very little has been surveyed. Not only have there been overlapping claims by even NCR land-owners but the state authorities have issued many leases to logging and plantation companies and this has led to close to 200 cases being brought to court by NCR land claimants.

The idea of a Dayak chamber was mooted at a seminar in Kuala Lumpur in 2003 by Bernard Dompok, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department from Sabah, and Moggie, a former federal minister and an Iban from Sarawak, with the support of then Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad.