Ahli parlimen Tuaran berkata, bangunkan sabah, hentikan program angkasawan ke 2

STOP Angkasawan Program, Instead use the money to develop Sabah and Sarawak

I propose that the government’s program in sending the second angkasawan into space should be suspended with immediate effect, or totally stop and instead the money should be utilize in developing Sabah as Food Producing state. There is no point in us being able to spending millions of ringgit to send man into space when the we are still totally depending of rice imports to feed our citizen. Currently the world is facing a food crisis where several third world countries are facing severe food shortages. Sabah is only producing slightly above 35% of its rice requirement and should the percentage dip below this, our rice and food situation in Sabah should be consider on a disastrous level. By right, Sabah and Sarawak should be able to produce its own rice if everyone is committed into embarking on rice cultivation with government assistant. When I was a member of the State cabinet (1999-2000), a proposal was made to identify 20,000 hactares of land to be developed into rice cultivation. The proposal was followed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry, then under Datuk Lajim Hj Ukin and I remember being told that an area have already been identified. But until now, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry seem to be still in the process of identifying those areas. I suggest that if those suitable areas are under forest reserve, the government can turn other hilly and untenable state land into forest reserve and release this suitable land to be developed for rice cultivation.