PETALING JAYA: Warisan president Shafie Apdal has cast doubt on the federal government’s goal to eradicate hardcore poverty in Sabah by the end of July, describing this as an “impossible” feat.
The former Sabah chief minister said the federal government’s data on hardcore poor families in the state did not reflect the reality on the ground, which was far worse.
“Based on the situation on the ground, I’m sure it cannot be solved (by the end of July) because the figure is much higher, not 10,000 (households).
“For example, if you look at Pulau Sebatik, Pitas and Long Pasia … There are a lot of people living in hardcore poverty in these areas alone,” he told reporters during his visit to Papar, Sabah.
Last Friday, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said the government planned to eliminate hardcore poverty in Sabah by the end of July, with the number of households in this category having dropped from 20,000 to 9,000.
The statistics department said in July last year that Sabah was the state with the highest poverty rate in Malaysia at 19.7%, followed by Kelantan (13.2%) and Sarawak (10.8%).
Shafie said more detailed steps were needed to effectively end hardcore poverty in Sabah, adding that the situation there was different than that in Peninsular Malaysia.
“In the peninsula, the poor may earn at least RM1,000, but in Sabah, they have no jobs, no wages.”
The Semporna MP added that he did not want the government to think that it had eliminated hardcore poverty only for people to still live in hardship in Sabah. - FMT
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