The BN slogan 'Janji Ditepati' is wasted in Sabah where piped water is still a luxury.
Recently the villagers staged a peaceful protest of what they called the ruling Barisan Nasional’s unfulfilled promises or “Janji Tak Ditepati”.
And even as Najib shook hands with the people in Bongawan and Kota Kinabalu during his visit last Saturday and declared BN had kept their promises for 50 years, in Ranau some two hours from Kota Kinabalu, villagers said they have never had piped water.
The kampung residents said the only water tank that was available to them and which was used to store water from Mesilau river was now filled with silt and knee-deep mud and rust.
A spokesman for the protesting villagers, Ly J Sya Welliam said the water tank could no longer store water and many of the 3,000 residents in the four kampungs had always been without clean water.
The four kampungs involved in the protest held at Kampung Kibbas roadside here were Paka 1, Koporingan, Purak Ogis and Kibbas.
They held their peaceful sit-in demonstration under the eyes of a group of policemen from the district police station.
They had earlier marched from Kibbas Siba carrying three big banners and various placards that registered both their frustration and queries to the government of the day.
Ineffective assemblyman
Meanwhile a protester from Kg Kibbas, John Gilong, 43, claimed various efforts had been made to get Keranaan assemblyman, Masidi Manjun, who is also Sabah Minister for Tourism, Culture and Environment, to resolve their plight but these had failed so far.
There are about 1,200 registered voters from the areas.
The State Reform Party (STAR) which has made inroads among the rural folk is hoping the general discontent with the pace of development will translate into votes for the opposition in the elections.
It’s Ranau chief, Jalibin Paidi, who was at the scene with the protesters, said the BN government especially Masidi was obliged to resolve the clean water supply problem to the four kampungs as the area is not without natural raw water supply nearby.
“The least the ruling leaders could do is push for an immediate and long term solution. The situation right now is unacceptable as these kampungs are near the town and many of the houses are near the main road.
“STAR is sympathetic to their problems and we are trying our best to get their voices and plight heard by the authorities,” he said.
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