Enough with the ‘big’ pledges, Rahman

His constituents want him to provide clean drinking water, roads and electricity before talking about bringing in “robust development.

KOTA BELUD: Local leaders here are tired of hearing their MP boast and make promises and pledges which have come to nothing over the past five year.

Abdul Rahman Dahalan, they claimed has done nought and is all talk and no substance.

Rahman who retained his MP seat in the May 5 general election for the second term is now the new Minister of Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government and has pledged to bring “robust development” to his poorly developed constituency.

But his knowing constituents, want him to stop talking big and instead tackle the issue of getting the hundreds of villagers in the constituency fitted with the basic necessities – clean drinking water, electricity and drainage among others.

Media-savvy Abdul Rahman has made known that he will bring rapid developments to Kota Belud now that he is a Federal minister, but many are asking what had he accomplished when he was made its MP since 2008.

The spotlight has remained on him since he started making pledges to bring  mega-projects in agriculture, infrastructure and oil and gas. He’s even spoken of building a port in Kota Belud.

He has also promised thousands of new job opportunities for locals through these mega-projects which include the pan-Borneo Highway project.

But the new Kadamaian assemblyman, Jeremy Uku Malajad, urged Abdul Rahman to focus instead on resolving the perennial “smaller” issues in the area.

“His pledges sound good but he should resolve basic issues in Kota Belud first like building more roads, get clean water supplied to kampungs, build more “balai rayas”, clinics, football fields and others.

“Right now cows are still roaming the Kota Belud town,” he told FMT, taking in a dig at Rahman’s designation as Minister of Urban Wellbeing.

Why talk of development now?

The opposition assemblyman also ticked off the MP for not consulting with other leaders, stakeholders and representatives before making decisions that would affect the whole constituency.

Another local leader here, Peter Marajin, a lawyer who heads an NGO called Gabungan e-Sumber Malaysia (GEM), questioned  Rahman’s sudden push for t “tremendous development” when he had accomplished little of note over the last five years as MP.

“Why didn’t he start these projects then? Was the five-year term just to warm up the seat?” Marajin asked, adding that it is puzzling that only a constituency that is represented by a minister would get development.

“If that is so then it would be better for all Sabah MPs to be appointed ministers as only then all areas could get or achieve ‘tremendous development’”, he said.

Marajin reminded the minister that 50 years had gone by since Sabah helped in the formation of Malaysia but had made little progress in terms of basic development itself.

“The development during the 50 years did not commensurate with what we have given to the central government,” Marajin pointed out.

Development, he said, should encompass all kampungs regardless if they voted for opposition or the ruling party BN in the recent general election.

Rahman, the Sabah BN secretary, weeks before the general election promised in a speech at the SMP Pekan II near here that water problems in Kota Belud would be resolved within six-months if the BN won the election.

It is now the talk of the town now. His six month deadline ends in October.

He is also being questioned over the number of abandoned padi fields due to a lack of an irrigation system which flies in the face of his claims of cementing Kota Belud’s place as Sabah’s rice bowl.