GEDONG, April 12 — Sarawak Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg today said the state government will not be giving out bonuses to Sarawak civil servants in conjunction with the Hari Raya celebration this year.
He said he prefers to give one-off bonus payments at the end of the year to enable the civil servants to buy educational materials for their school-going children.
“We have the Chinese New Year, Hari Raya, Gawai Dayak and Christmas to celebrate and I feel we must be fair to all festivals,” he told reporters after handing over compensation to owners of land acquired by the state government for the development of the Isthmus master plan here.
Abang Johari urged the civil servants to be prudent in their spending for the Hari Raya celebration, saying that they should not neglect the educational needs of their children.
“What is important is the education of their children. I feel that if there is a need to give the bonus, it should be given at the end of the year,” he said.
He said the state government needs to be rational in giving out bonuses to the state civil servants.
Earlier in his speech, the premier said the state government has earmarked Gedong/Simunjan area as an agriculture hub to produce not for Sarawak’s needs but also for the export market.
He said the area will be transformed into an agriculture hub, using modern technology and in line with the Post-Covid-19 Development Strategy 2030 (PCDS 2030).
He said he has asked Universiti Putra Malaysia, Bintulu campus, and Swinburne University, Sarawak campus, to conduct research to increase paddy production from a single to double cropping per season in Lubok Punggor in the Gedong district.
“We need to conduct the research, beginning from the seedlings right up to the harvest,” he added.
