Dr Sim (front, fourth left) holds up remnants of the ribbon during the opening ceremony flanked Syed Mashafuddin (front, third left) and Wee. — Photo by Chimon Upon
KUCHING (May 6): Sarawak’s nation-building must be guided by a clear agenda, not solely financial strength, said Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian.
He said that while money plays a role, the foundation of nation-building goes beyond monetary resources and requires strategic direction and transparency.
“In nation building, it is not just about money. Nowadays, if you say Sarawak is poor, nobody will believe you anymore.
“You know, the Chinese community tends to downplay their wealth. They do not like to tell people that they have money, but every day you see scam cases. In these scams, who makes up the majority of victims? The Chinese community.
“Every time I meet them, they say they have no money, but they still get scammed. The amounts involved are in the hundreds of thousands or even millions,” he said during the Affin Bank Pines Square branch opening ceremony here.
He added that the state now faces a similar situation, where claims of lacking financial resources are no longer convincing.
“When Sarawak says we have no money, no one believes it anymore. They see us buy MasWings and Bintulu Port. If you have no money, who will lend you money?
“So now it is very difficult to pretend Sarawak has no money. We might as well not pretend and instead tell people what our Sarawak nation-building agenda is,” he added.
He also highlighted the scale of Sarawak’s financial capacity, noting that its annual revenue is significantly higher compared to several other states.
“One year of Sarawak’s revenue is now equivalent to about 15 years of the Penang state government’s revenue and roughly five years of Selangor’s. By 2030, we will be very different,” he said.
Also present were Affin Islamic Bank Berhad chief executive officer Dato Paduka Syed Mashafuddin Syed Badarudin, Affin Islamic Bank chairman Musa Abdul Malek, Kuching South mayor Datuk Wee Hong Seng, Batu Kitang assemblyman Datuk Lo Khere Chiang and Padawan Municipal Council chairman Tan Kai.
