Stop selling your inherited land for pittance, Sabah minister tells villagers

Ewon Benedick says the state government is educating the natives to work their lands. (Facebook pic)

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah Rural Development Minister Ewon Benedick lamented the attitude of many rural folks who sell their land for a quick buck.

Speaking to reporters after launching native customary rights (NCR) land surveys in Nabawan today, Benedick said the decision to sell native land has resulted in the next generation becoming landless and being thrown further into poverty.

“That is why the state government is educating the natives to work their land by planting crops and carrying out other sustainable economic activities.

“Selling land for immediate profit not only harms the future of the next generations but also takes away their only inheritance,” he said.

Today marked the beginning of a new round of land surveys under the Sabah Native Land Services (Pantas) programme in Sepulut, involving 11 villages in the sub-district.

Benedick said the villagers there have waited for decades to get their land titles, having settled there for generations.

The Pantas programme was introduced in 2011 by the previous state government with the collaboration of the federal government to hasten surveys and issuance of land titles for native customary right land.

To date, the programme has been carried out in 123 villages in 21 districts statewide, involving 34,636ha.

Sabah Land and Survey Department director Safar Untong said the programme is expected to receive RM20 million this year from the federal government.

“Our team consists of 100 mobile members who will move from one area to the next, according to schedule. They will go down to the ground and engage with the natives and help resolve their land problems.”

He added the team will also take the opportunity to educate the people about the government’s laws and policies, especially regarding land.

So far, he said, the department has issued 5,610 land title drafts.

According to an NGO, which works closely with natives in the rural Sabah, many of these rural villagers have sold their lands to major corporate bodies for a pittance as they had no means to develop the land on their own.

The previous government had attempted to curb this problem by introducing its own version of communal grants, which prohibit villagers from selling their land.

The land was then developed by government agencies and GLCs on behalf of the villagers. The land was to be planted with oil palm or rubber trees, with the villagers receiving dividends from the ventures.

However, the current Sabah government has decided to do away with the communal grant scheme after it received several complaints that the programme was flawed and not beneficial to the people. - FMT