TAMBUNAN: Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Joseph Pairin Kitingan wants the young people to see and recognize achievements of 50 years of Sabah’s progress since the formation Malaysia.
He said they should think about the future and their role as citizens of Malaysia in developing the state to bring it on par with other more developed states in the country.
“The responsibility towards leading the nation and our state to move forward lies with us to determine the country’s development towards achieving Vision 2020,” he said in his speech when launching the district level Independence Month and 50 Years of “Sabah Maju Jaya In Malaysia” at Pisompuruan Square here yesterday.
Pairin, who is also Infrastructure Development Minister, said people needed to realize that there is still much more to be done to upgrade and improve the infrastructural development in the state.
According to him, as the future of the country is so important especially in terms of human capital and infrastructural development, the people and the young in particular should be more proactive in enhancing their knowledge and committed to helping the government in bringing about development and prosperity.
“At the same time, they also need to have the spirit of patriotism in defence of the country and state sovereignty against certain groups out to create chaos and destroy the over 50 years of peace and harmony in the country.
“Therefore, we have to be careful with these unscrupulous groups for their various attempts to spread unfounded propaganda and slander, hatred towards the government simply to disrupt public order and the peace we are enjoying today.
“We should not only know how to talk and criticize what has been achieved by the government, we should also take a more proactive part to boost the productivity and the achievement of the state,” he said.
Pairin, who is also the Tambunan State Assemblyman, said it could not be denied that the economy of the people had increased and was one of the best achievements contributed by the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) government to the people and country.
He is confident that with the improving economy and standard of living of the people, the well-being of the people could be further enhanced in line with the progress of the country by 2020.
This, he said, could only be achieved with continued commitment and cooperation of the people towards the government.
“I see people in the interior, once so backward are now showing promising improvements in their living standards due to the forward-looking policy of the government led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak.
“People in Tambunan have also made progress and this also indicates that the economy of the district has contributed to the development of the country today,” he said.
In this regard, he said, the young people who are future leaders would appreciate the progress achieved through independence that shaped the history of this country to a level that the people can be proud of.
He said the responsibility of developing the country and the state was not up to the government and its leaders, but the younger generation should also be jointly responsible because they are the future leaders of tomorrow.
Pairin, who is also Member of Parliament for Keningau asked all Malaysians in Sabah to be grateful and proud of the leadership of the country today.
“I hope the people would grab the opportunities provided by the government so that they are not marginalized and isolated from the mainstream development,” he said.
Also present at the event were Acting District Officer who is also the organizing chairman Robert Stidi, government officials, community leaders and BN leaders.