Political Dominance - How Important Is It For A Community?

 Political Dominance - How Important Is It For A Community?

Among the industries that will remain forever green anywhere in the world are in the energy sector and the telecommunication sector, particularly the internet part of it. The education industry too is one such sector but in Malaysia the government still maintain a firm grip on education as the vast majority of the Malaysian population are in the B40 and in the lower spectrum of the M40 group. For this group, private educational institutions are out of their reach.

This article does not seek to ‘explore’ beyond Sarawak’s shores but just the potentials of these two sectors in Sarawak.

Telecommunications - Internet Connectivity

The internet industry in Sarawak can rightly be described as a most lucrative diamond field as the potentials for profits in this industry is boundless.

As the world moved relentlessly forward to the digital economy and the IR.4 era, internet and artificial intelligence becomes increasingly prominent as these two ‘utilities’ are crucial components in the drive to fully embrace the two new normal.

Sarawak is no different.

How big exactly is this ‘diamond field’ that we are looking at? Very briefly, we are looking at plans to construct some 1400 telecommunication by 2022. So far at least 1200 have erected and equipped with devices that enabled communication from one point to another. In line with Sarawak’s digital economy ambitions, CM Abang Johari had spoken about upgrading internet speed in Sarawak to 2 terrabits per second (2000 Gbps. Think real time 5G internet). So far Abang Johari has pinned RM1 billion to this ambition. Lately, RM50 million was mentioned, for the construction and installation of VSAT network. He further mentioned that he is hoping that the federal government will match the RM1 billion by the Sarawak government. We are therefore looking at RM2 billion that is to be made in this diamond field.

Who are the companies that are the first to take off from the starting blocks in the race to mine this fields?

Three local telcos namely PP Telecom Sdn Bhd, Danawa Resources Sdn Bhd and Sacofa Sdn Bhd made it to the news in October 2020, as forerunners in this race.

https://www.theborneopost.com/2020/10/07/sacofa-inks-ties-with-telco-industry-peers-to-benefit-sarawak/

PP Telecom Sdn Bhd is a telco co-owned by Abang Abdillah Izzarim bin Abang Abd Rahman Zohari. Abang Abdillah owns 8,633,100 shares in the company. Izzarim incidentally is also a director/shareholder in Borneo Seaoffshore Engineering Sdn Bhd. Borneo Seaoffshore and its jv partner Handal Resources Bhd were given a RM300 million contract by Petronas Carigali in June 2015.If you are wondering why Izzarim’s surname looks very familiar, you are right, it is very familiar. And the connection to the government of Sarawak is hard to miss.

Energy (Oil & Gas)

The front page in the New Sarawak Tribune on the 19th June 2021 screamed “ We’re In Control “ and that is no mean boast, although not just in ways obvious to the eyes and minds of the less savy in matters of connection between big business and government.

The news was about the conditional award by Petros of Sarawak Onshore Block SK433, a natural gas concession, to Petra Energy Development Sdn Bhd and its jv partner, Uzma Engineering Sdn Bhd to develop.

https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/petra-energy-uzma-jv-bags-ep-contract-petros-block-sk433-sarawak

The starring role in this potentially multi-billion profits venture is Petra Energy Development Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of a holding company called Petra Energy Bhd. The executive director of Petra Energy Berhad is Sarawak borned personality, Dato Hj. Ahmadi Bin Yusoff (Ahmadi Bin Yusoff). If you are wondering if Ahmadi Yusoff is a relation of federal minister for works Dato’ Sri Fadillah Yusoff, you are right. He is also the brother to Tan Sri Bustari Yusoff, once described as a mover and shaker in Sarawak and the hands that quietly guides former PM Najib Razak. This former Treasurer of PBB has a wide and diverse business interests, from property and construction to oil & gas to the medical sector and infrastructure development.

You may also want to read up on the appointment of Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari’s deputy in PBB Satok, Ibrahim Baki to the board of directors of Petronas. Ibrahim Baki is the Executive Chairman of Hubline Berhad, a company that was awarded an RM63 million contract to provide air service to the Sarawak Department of Health, in addition to contracts from Petronas.

https://sarawakvoice.com/2020/08/20/petronas-appoints-ibrahim-baki-from-sarawak-as-new-board-member/

https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2021/01/11/hubline-gets-rm63mil-flying-doctor-service-contract

Once again, the connection to the government is hard to miss.

As the conversation on a potential dayak CM after the coming PRN gains traction, what are the take home lessons from the examples in the two sectors mentioned above?

First of all, for any community to be actively involved in any sector of the economy, one of the must have prerequisite is political dominance. And so it follows that in order for the dayak community to be able to have a fair share in these diamond fields the dayak community must first have political dominance in Sarawak. This is a prize that has eluded them since the birth of Malaysia in Sept 1963 and the failure to achieve political dominance is the reason why the dayaks are unable to say we are in control.

It is not just a matter of the ability to acquire a fair share in these diamond fields but also in many other areas like employment in the public sector or the civil service and the education sector.

Isn’t the much touted dayaks’ unity in GPS providing the political dominance  that the dayaks require in order to be able to mine these diamond fields? The answer can be found in another question. Can an illusion deliver a tangible and measurable result? For truly, the unity spoken of by the dayak leaders in GPS component parties is just an illusion.

There is no denying that there are a handful of dayaks millionaires in Sarawak. Almost all of these dayaks millionaires are a result of a system of patronage where the holders of the keys to economic prosperity are not from the dayak community. These millionaires are either leaders in the GPS coalition or cronies of these leaders. The vast majority of the dayaks are to be found in the so-called B40 households and they are mostly rural based.

An as we moved closer to the PRN-12, this message is timely : Dayaks, Reneng Renung Lah.

TRANSPARENCY - A RARE COMMODITY BUT NOT VALUED BY THE POPULACE

 TRANSPARENCY - A RARE COMMODITY BUT NOT VALUED BY THE POPULACE

The link provided immediately below is intended to bring to you the information that the Sarawak state government is prepared to give to Sarawakians in relation to the progress made in the efforts to achieve herd immunity against the Covid.19 virus.

https://www.newsarawaktribune.com.my/vaccinated-people-way-below-targeted-number/

The following are my musings on the matter and if you want to view first-hand the figures that are cited in this news report, do go to the FaceBook page of Unit Komunikasi Awam Sarawak (UKAS).

You may want to read up on the various criticisms levelled against the National Recovery Plan (NRP) announced by PM Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin on 15th June 2021 in order to get a clearer picture of the context against which I will express my thoughts on the issue.

Chief among the criticisms is the lack of clarity on the strategy and action plan.

https://www.pmo.gov.my/national-covid-19-immunisation-programme/

https://www.theborneopost.com/2021/06/16/yii-calls-nrp-a-shell-devoid-of-real-substance-and-strategy/

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2021/06/17/national-recovery-plan-lacks-clear-strategy-to-flatten-covid-19-curve-says-mma

To my mind, a Covid.19 recovery plan at national level or at state level should start with a vision statement from the government i.e. what state the nation should be in first before the pandemic is considered as fully under control, for example the business sector is fully opened, all government departments and their other arms are operating at full capacity, employment rate restored to the pre-pandemic level and all social and religious aspects of Malaysians’ lives are restored to pre-pandemic state. In short, Malaysia must first return to normalcy or near normalcy.

The vision ought to be followed by an equally clear statement of strategy, stating how the government is to achieve the vision, for example by saying that by a certain date at least 80% of the malaysian population must be fully vaccinated and herd immunity achieved.

This in turn ought be followed by a plan or plans for action that will enable the strategy to be fully and effectively executed, for example,  by saying all resources available at the government’s disposal - human and financial, will be mobilized to ensure that at least 80% of the population will be registered for vaccination by a certain date, sufficient stock of vaccines is available, vaccines will be brought to locations that are easily accessible even to Malaysians in the most remote of locations and in the meantime, mass/surge testings will be carried out to identify and isolate all asymptomatic cases among the populace.

The NRP contained almost nothing along those lines and so we can more or less expect that nothing of substance that can bring benefits to the populace will transmit from the plan.

Back to the information from UKAS. You will notice that the Sarawak Tribune reported the news with this caption: ‘Vaccinated People Way Below Targeted Number’. The targeted number in the context of the news report is number of Sarawakians that have registered themselves for vaccination, either through Mysejahtera or other means. That number is 1,405,883 or 68.82% of the targeted number of 2,042,840 Sarawakians. This presumably is 80% of the entire population of Sarawak and the number targeted in order to achieve herd immunity.

The information contained therein does not give any indication as to when herd immunity can be achieved and Sarawakians can returned to pre-pandemic condition of living.

CM Datuk Patinggi had stated that Sarawak hoped to achieved herd immunity by August 2021.

https://www.theborneopost.com/2021/06/16/sarawak-aims-at-50000-covid-19-vaccine-jabs-daily-for-herd-immunity-by-august/

What Sarawakians want to know now is what the government is doing to register the other 636,067 Sarawakians (not counting the PATIs staying/working illegally in Sarawak) who have not registered themselves for Covid.19 vaccinations yet?

Sarawakians also want to know what the government is doing to bring the vaccines to 1,603,321 Sarawakians who have not been vaccinated, out of which 636,067 have not registered?

A person who has not registered for vaccination is like a person whose location is unknown and for them to be part of the herd immunity, they must be located and made to register.

There are roughly 74 days before the targeted date for herd immunity is to be achieved. 50,000 vaccinations per day based on stock of vaccines and Pusat Pemberian Vaksin (PPV) alone may be achievable but without the 1,603,321 people to vaccinate, herd immunity by end of August 2021 may prove to be an elusive target.

James Masing - Nama Tuju dik Kebendar?

  James Masing -  Nama Tuju dik Kebendar?

He (DCM Tan Sri Datuk Amar James Masing) said the rolling out of vaccine to Sarawak by the Health Ministry is not fast enough as the state wants to create herd immunity as soon as possible, and thus suggested that Sarawak, other states and big conglomerates be allowed to purchase the recommended vaccine from any international sources.

“The demand to be vaccinated is more than supply. We have the fund, please allow us to use it for the sake of our people,” he said in a statement yesterday.

https://www.theborneopost.com/2021/05/15/masing-allow-sarawak-to-purchase-its-own-vaccine/

Ari semua utai ke udah dipejakuka tauka udah dipadah TKM Tan Sri Datuk Amar James Masing ianya, Sarawak deka meli Vaksin Covid-19 ia ka diguna enggau chara terus ngena danji dua hala ke semina nyengkaum Sarawak enggau orang ke ngaga vaksin nya aja. Nitih ke atur COVAX, ke bereti perintah pusat ianya disengkaum lalu nyadi orang tengah ke meli vaksin.

Utai ke disebut James Masing nya tadi nyau ngasuh rayat Sarawak gaga ati, tang ba dalam nya mega, runding rayat Sarawak nyau carut. Rayat Sarawak nanya, nama kebuah Tan Sri James Masing mansutka jaku nya laban kitai nemu senentang perintah pusat udah meri pemendar ngagai perintah Sarawak ianya ulih meli vaksin kena 23hb April 2021. Enti nitih ke ia ke megai TKM Sarawak, ia semampai ninga jaku lalau tauka semampai ninga berita pasal isu ke beguna bekait enggau pengerai anak Sarawak baka isu Vaksin Covid-19. Kengka aku, James Masing tu sigi udah dipadah pasal pemendar perintah Sarawak ulih meli vaksin tang ia udah enda ingat tauka lalek?

https://www.bernama.com/en/news.php?id=1955133

Malaysia, ari perintah pusat, ngaga urusan meli vaksin Covid-19 ngena chara COVAX, siti ari chara ke dikemendar World Health Organisation lalu Malaysia nyengkaum enggau program ke nerima Vaksin Covid-19 nya mega. Entara objektif COVAX tu ianya mansik ni bagi menua ke ngagih vaksin enda sama penyampau ba tiap-tiap negara ba dunia ke beguna ke vaksin enggau deka mansik enggau silik ngambika vaksin nya tadi dijual enggau rega ke sama.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVAX#Vaccine_candidates      (List of countries participating in COVAC)

Siti ari isu ke ngekang pengawa lalu ngenusahka proses ngagih vaksin tu enggau setimpal ianya danji langsuung dua hala ke digaga menua ke kaya enggau menua ke ngaga vaksin baka Amerika Syarikat enggau United Kingdom. Ari pengawa utai ke bakatu, kitai ulih meda menua ke kaya tu nyau meli vaksin naka penyamai ari menua kilang ke ngaga vkasin enggau penyampau ke belebih serta meli enggau rega ti mudah. Ari utai tu meh kebuah vaksin Covid-19 nyau nadai chukup ungkup menua bukai .

Penyakit Covid-19 ke benung nyeruga dunya diatu nyau makin ari makin ngacau pengidup. Perengka ke dikena orang ngaga vaksin Covid-19 nya nadai agi. Nambah mega, utai ke nyadi tu mega nyau ngasuh vaksin nyau majak kurang serta nadai cukup.

TKM James Masing Sarawak tu ngembuan duit simpan ke maioh penyampau RM31 biliion. Tang, duit ke disimpan munyi ko dipadah ia nya nadai bereti Sarawak tu setanding enggau menua ke kaya baka Amerika Syarikat, UK tauka Perancis. Enti sema utai ke disebut ia nya amat tauka betul, pasal perintah Sarawak tu ngembuan duit simpan nyampau nya, nama laluh duit ke udah dikena meli vaksin nya tadi agi cukup kini enti dikena melanja semua projek ke besai baka andau Batang Lupar, (RM848 juta), jalai ke nyatupka Sarawak Sabah SSLR ( RM 5.2 billion), projek STOLPORT ba Spaoh (RM 108.1 juta) enggau projek-projek ke bukai. Tang, pengamat ia, projek-projek besai ke disebut tu semina laban deka ngaga ‘ngambika urang ngapu’ “Apuuuu, Waseh, Wow”  sebedau PRN 2021?

https://www.theborneopost.com/2018/06/19/masing-suggests-sarawaks-reserves-of-rm31-billion-be-used-before-the-next-state-election/

Laban ke vaksin Covid-19 tu nyau majak kurang ba pasar, peluang Sarawak deka meli vaksin ngena chara jampat ianya danji dua hala nya tadi, taja perintah Sarawak ngena semua duit simpan ke maioh keno ko dipadah Masing, sigi tipis tauka sigi nadai jalai.

Kitai sigi nadai ulih madahka Masing tu enda nemu reti utai, laban kitai sama bela nemu ia tu ngembuan pelajar ke tinggi, enda patut utai ke disebut ia nya nadai betul lalu sepengudahnya ia pen lalu mansutka jaku perintah Sarawak tu deka meli vaksin ngena chara dua hala. Jaku tanya diatu, nama ia mansut ke jaku nya laban deka meri sokongan moral ngagai Ketua Menteri Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari ngambika enda mutus ati pemendar ia deka meli vaksin enggau chara langsung ari menua ke ngaga vaksin?

KM Abang Johari , kena 19hb April 2021 mayanya kala madah, perintah pusat udah meli pemendar ngagai perintah Sarawak tu meli vaksin enggau chara langsung ari menua ke ngaga vaksin ngambika rayat Sarawak ulih nerima vaksin jampat agi.

https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2021/04/19/cm-says-approved-expert-panel-to-apprise-sarawak-on-covid-19-vaccine-develo/1967652

Enti kitai meda tauka nemu bakani vaksin diatu, kitai sama bela nemu vaksin tu sigi nadai maioh agi dijual urang ba pasar, nya meh kebuah sigi tusah perintah Sarawak deka meli vaksin tu ngena chara terus meli ari menua ke ngeluar ke vaksin. Ari tu meh kitai ulih meda nama utai ke disebut Perdana Menteri Muhyiddin Yassin suba sigi betul sereta amat. Sama mega enggau projek ke besai ke sepatut ia dipelanja perintah persekutuan tang diatu nyau udah dikemelakangka perintah Sarawak. Semua utai ke digaga sida semina ngambi ulih lalu ngambika rayat ngumbai sida bekerja beamat-amat ngagai rayat. Tang, semua nya semina nginti undi sebedau PRN 2021.

https://dayakdaily.com/muhyiddin-not-easy-for-sarawak-to-purchase-its-own-covid-19-vaccines/

Sarawak diatu nyau ditinggang penusah laban penyakit Covid-19. Maioh rayat nyau lenyau kerja lalu nadai penatai pemisi laban perintah ngaga PKP (Perintah Kawalan Pergerakan) lalu maioh urang sakit laban ke diserang virus Covid-19. Diatu, rayat Sarawak ulih meda enggau silik, utai ke disebut TKM James Masing nadai meri pengelantang enggau penyenang ati ngagai rayat Sarawak. Masing patut ngiga jalai ke ulih mutuska rantaian penyakit Covid-19 tu ngambika rayat Sarawak ulih idup baka biasa. Pengidup ke dibaruh Perintah Kawalan Pergerakan (PKP) enda sama bagi tiap-tiap iku rayat. Pemerinsa enggau penusah ruang bilik B40 maya utai tu nyadi makin ari makin majak pedis enti dibandingka enggau ruang bilik ke kaya raja.

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(Bahasa)

James Masing -  Apa Sebenar Tujuan Kamu?

He (DCM Tan Sri Datuk Amar James Masing) said the rolling out of vaccine to Sarawak by the Health Ministry is not fast enough as the state wants to create herd immunity as soon as possible, and thus suggested that Sarawak, other states and big conglomerates be allowed to purchase the recommended vaccine from any international sources.

“The demand to be vaccinated is more than supply. We have the fund, please allow us to use it for the sake of our people,” he said in a statement yesterday.

https://www.theborneopost.com/2021/05/15/masing-allow-sarawak-to-purchase-its-own-vaccine/

Secara ringkas, apa yang dicadangkan oleh TKM Tan Sri Datuk Amar James Masing ialah Sarawak akan membeli vaksin Covid-19 yang diperlu secara langsung melalui perjanjian dua hala yang hanya melibatkan Sarawak dan pembuat vaksin. Inisiatif COVAX, yang mana kerajaan pusat adalah peserta dan yang merupakan pelantar yang diguna oleh kerajaan pusat untuk membeli vaksin akan dipertengahkan.

Kenyataan beliau disambut dalam masa yang sama dengan ketawa dan kekeliruan oleh anak Sarawak. Mereka bertanya apakah yang telah membuat Tan Sri James mengeluarkan kenyataan tersebut kerana kerajaan pusat sudahpun memberi kelulusan kepada kerajaan Sarawak untuk membeli vaksin secara langsung pada 23hb April 2021. Sebagai TKM Sarawak, beliau sering diberi taklimat berkenaan dengan isu-isu penting yang berkaitan dengan kesejahteraan anak Sarawak seperti isu vaksin Covid-19. Adakah beliau diberi tahu tentang kelulusan itu tetapi sudah lupa?

https://www.bernama.com/en/news.php?id=1955133

Malaysia, melalui kerajaan pusat, membuat semua urusan membeli vaksin Covid-19 melalui COVAX, satu satunya pelantar dibawah World Health Organisation dimana Malaysia adalah peserta. Antara objektif COVAX ialah untuk mencegah daripada pengagihan vaksin yang tidak saksama di antara negara yang memerlukan vaksin dan memastikan vaksin dijual dengan harga yang sama.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVAX#Vaccine_candidates      (List of countries participating in COVAC)

Salah satu daripada isu yang telah menyukar proses pengagihan yang saksama ialah perjanjian langsung dua hala yang dibuat oleh negara kaya dengan pembuat vaksin seperti Amerika Syarikat dan United Kingdom. Terbukti, negara ini telah membeli vaksin  terus dari pembuat dengan kuantiti yang melebihi keperluan sebenar dan dengan harga yang lebih murah. Perkara ini telah menimbul keadaan kekurangan vaksin Covid-19 di pasaran di pasaran.

Wabak Covid-19 yang sedang melanda seluruh dunia sekarang telah mengganggu rantaian bekalan bahan yang diperlukan dalam pembuatan vaksin.Malah, hal ini turut  menyumbang kepada kekurangan vaksin dipasaran.

TKM James Masing pernah mengisyaratkan bahawa kerajaan Sarawak mempunyai dana simpanan berjumlah sebanyak RM31 biliun. Akan tetapi, simpanan tersebut tidak meletakkan Sarawak dalam tempat yang setanding dengan Amerika Syarikat, UK atau Perancis. Jika apa yang dikatakan beliau itu benar dan sahih, bahawa kerajaan Sarawak mempunyai dana simpanan sebanyak itu, adakah baki selepas membeli vaksin masih mencukupi untuk membiayai kesemua projek besar besaran seperti jambatan Batang Lupar (RM848 juta), jalan menghubungi Sarawak Sabah SSLR (RM5.2 biliun), projek STOLPORT di Spaoh (RM108.1 juta) dan projek projek yang lain yang bertujuan melahirkan ‘faktor wow’ sebelum PRN 2021?

https://www.theborneopost.com/2018/06/19/masing-suggests-sarawaks-reserves-of-rm31-billion-be-used-before-the-next-state-election/

Dengan kekurangan bekalan vaksin Covid-19 dipasaran, maka peluang untuk Sarawak membeli vaksin secara langsung melalui perjanjian dua hala, walaupun dengan menggunakan kesemua dana simpanan, adalah tipis sekali.

Tidak boleh dinafikan bahawa TKM James Masing adalah seorang yang bepelajaran sangat tinggi, jadi tidak mungkin apa yang disebut diatas merupakan sebab beliau mengeluarkan kenyataan tersebut. Persoalannya sekarang, adakah beliau mengeluarkan kenyataan itu sebagai tanda sokongan moral buat Ketua Menteri Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari supaya tidak putus asa dalam usahanya membeli vaksin secara langsung dari pasaran vaksin?

KM Abang Johari pada 19hb Apr 2021 telah berkata, kerajaan pusat telah memberi kelulusan kepada negeri Sarawak untuk membeli vaksin secara langsung dari pasaran demi mempercepatkan proses vaksinasi anak-anak Sarawak.

https://www.malaymail.com/news/malaysia/2021/04/19/cm-says-approved-expert-panel-to-apprise-sarawak-on-covid-19-vaccine-develo/1967652

Keadaan sebenar dipasaran vaksin sekarang menunjukan bahawa, memang mustahil untuk kerajaan Sarawak membeli vaksin secara langsung. Ini membuktikan bahawa apa yang disebut oleh Perdana Menteri Muhyiddin Yassin terdahulu memang benar dan tepat. Sama juga dengan projek besar-besaran yang sepatutnya dibiayai oleh kerajaan persekutuan tapi kini dianiayai oleh kerajaan Sarawak, dan semua ini hanya untuk melahirkan ‘faktor wow’ sebelum PRN 2021.

https://dayakdaily.com/muhyiddin-not-easy-for-sarawak-to-purchase-its-own-covid-19-vaccines/

Sarawak kini sedang hidup menderita akibat daripada wabak penyakit Covid-19. Banyak yang hilang sumber pendapatan akibat perintah kawalan pergerakan dan banyak yang jatuh sakit akibat diserang virus Covid-19. Kini, warga Sarawak jelas sekali dapat melihat bahawa kenyataan TKM James Masing tidak memberi sebarang kelegaan kepada anak Sarawak. Masing digesa untuk mencari jalan yang berkesan untuk memutuskan rantaian wabak Covid-19 supaya anak Sarawak boleh hidup seperti yang biasa. Kehidupan dibawah perintah kawalan pergerakan bukan serupa bagi semua orang. Penderitaan dan keperitan keluarga B40 lebih dashyat daripada kesulitan yang dirasai oleh keluarga yang kaya.

Sarawak - Covid-19 Killing Field

                                               Sarawak - Covid-19 Killing Field

Introduction

The Covid.19 or SARS-COV.2 virus originated from Wuhan in China and became a major global news item in Dec 2019. 

In Malaysia the first case of COVID-19 was detected on the 25th Jan 2020. On the 4th Feb 2020 Malaysia reported it’s first local Malaysian infection. In March 2020 a Covid.19 pandemic was declared in Malaysia.

Globally, on 4th May 2021, there have been 153,187,889 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 3,209,109 deaths, reported to WHO. On the same day, Malaysia reported a cumulative figure of  420,632 Covid.19 positive cases and 1574 cases of Covid.19 related deaths. 

There are now at least 30 variants or mutations of Covid.19 and some of the variants are said to be much more infectious than the Covid.19. The regimes of Covid.19 vaccines that is being used now were developed based on protein in the Covid.19 and while these vaccines can be used against the variants it is feared that it’s effectiveness is minimal.

The implications for herd immunity against these variants if the chain of transmission cannot be broken is hard to miss.

Sarawak’s Situation

Locally in Sarawak, the cumulative confirmed cases reached 32,667 and total fatalities was reported to be 188 (12% of the national total of 1574). As at the time of writing there is not a single green zone left in Sarawak.

Public hospitals in Sarawak were earlier reported to have hit full capacity for Covid.19 patients. It is not just Covid.19 ICU beds and intubators but there were also rumors that doctors were hard-pressed to treat patients with other sicknesses.

Yesterday (4th May 2021) Sarawak recorded 620 new positive cases and 4 fatalities. There is no sign that the pandemic is receding in Sarawak. There has been no report of vaccinations taking place any where in Sarawak yesterday and the day before and the assumption is that there is not vaccines left from the first batch received from the ministry of health (MOH).

Today Borneo Post reported that a field hospital, to operated from a community hall in Kapit will become operational on the 7th May 2021. For the uninitiated, a field hospital is usually needed only in areas of catastrophic disaster and war torn zones. A field hospital is the proverbial picture that paints a thousand words in this context.

The MOH’s minister Dr. Adham Baba was on the 3rd May 2021 reported to have said a total of 30 variants of the Covid.19 had been detected in Malaysia.

To a non-medical professional like me, the situation can be summarised in one word - CRITICAL

Covid.19 Pandemic Containment Measures in Sarawak

 The first movement control order (MCO) under the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 and the Police Act 1967 was implemented on the 18th March 2020 and it lasted for 14 days. When the Emergency (Essential Powers) Ordinance 2021 (‘Ordinance’) was gazetted on the 14th Jan 2021, the measures that came with it were also implemented in Sarawak. In between there were the Enhancement Movement Control Orders (EMCOs) and the Conditional Movement Control Orders (CMCOs). The stated objective of these movement control orders was to break the chain of transmission of the virus. 

Screenings for Covid.19 positive Sarawakians were done, mostly in a very ad hoc, almost random manners. The vaccinations which started on the 26th Feb 2020 in Sarawak was the next in Sarawak’s measures to contain and eliminate the pandemic.

Up until August 2020, the movement control measures were largely effective. From 2766 in March 2020, the figures when down to just 364 in August 2020. It then spiked to 1884 in Sept 2020 and from there onwards it was downhill all the way, till the end of 2020.

How Did Sarawak Become A Covid.19 Killing Field - Sarawakians Part Of The Fault

Sarawakians are not without fault in the transmission of this virus. Among the first few positive cases and Covid.19 related death in Sarawak were cases that originated from the Sri Petaling Mosque (Tabligh gathering) cluster in Kuala Lumpur. What contributed to the downfall which started in Sept 2020 was a mixture of indiscipline and ignorance  - from failing to use face masks to poor personal hygiene, from prohibited gatherings like birthday parties to weddings, funerals to going out to public places when they were officially under quarantine.

How Did Sarawak Become A Covid.19 Killing Field - The Sarawak Government Part Of The Fault.

The MCO, CMCO, EMCO that were implemented failed because there were always exceptions made to the rule. Exemptions were common place, under the camouflage of workers in essential services, spousal visits, humanitarian grounds etc etc. These control orders were riddled with ‘jalan tikus’. Covid.19 positive people with symptoms and asymptomatic ones alike moved quite freely between zones or districts that have been color coded differently. In short, both the implementation and the enforcement fell short of the standards required to break the chain of transmission between zones and districts.

One such decision was the decision to reopen schools on the 2nd week of March 2021. The timing caused a much consternation among stake holders because school clusters were popping up in so many schools and most teachers were not yet vaccinated then.

The need to be different, to be unique compounded the problems of the leaky MCO’s fences. Since the 3rd May 2021 Sarawak had no green zone left but when the MOH & Majlis Keselamatan Negara (MKN) announced MCO.3, Sarawak was assigned the CMCO, a lesser form the MCO. Why? I am pretty sure it has to do with the coming Pilihan Raya Negeri and voters’ sentiment.

Screening for Covid.19 positive people, perhaps the most crucial link in the efforts to break the chain of transmission appeared to be the weakest part in the government’s initiatives in Sarawak. Wuhan city’s success in breaking the chain of transmission was to a very significant extent attributed to the mass or surge screenings done in the city. This in turn was made possible by a lockdown in the city, one day before the Chinese New Year 2020.

The Sarawak Disaster Management Committee had in the early days of the pandemic in Sarawak divided Sarawak into zones and district and color coded these zones according to the number of Covid.19 positive cases. The ground work for mass or surge screening and lock downs  was already there but mass or surge screenings were not done.

Why are mass or surge screenings important? In almost all of the SDMC’s daily report on Covid.19 in Sarawak, there is a mention of asymptomatic cases. These unseen and undetected Covid.19 positive people who do not display any outward symptoms are moving around freely and spreading the virus and are not stopped until they are caught in a ‘dragnet’. To add to the complexities caused by the failure to do mass screenings, reports are surfacing that the Covid.19 vaccines which are being rolled out today is not thought to be effective against the Covid.19 variants that are already spreading globally now. 

To my mind, untrained in things medical, these asymptomatic people must be detected as soon as humanely possible and isolated until healed, without exception. Failing to do so now may mean that herd immunity for Sarawak is still a hazy thing in a far away horizon.

We now come to the issue of vaccine and vaccination. The National Vaccination Programme laid out by the Ministry of Health and announced by PM Tan Sri Mahiaddin Yassin is very clear but it looks like Sarawak is not following the plan.

Sarawak has a population of roughly 2.8 million people. To achieve herd immunity, about 2.2 million Sarawakians will have to be fully vaccinated by 28th Feb 2022. The vaccination process in Sarawak thus far averages of 868 people per day. At this rate it will take 7 years from now before Sarawak achieves herd immunity, if the variants or mutants causes no additional problems to Sarawak.

The process of vaccination in Sarawak is hampered by many critical issues namely problems with registration, random requests for priority from groups that are not originally classified as front liners and insufficiency of vaccines in Sarawak.

It is noted that there has been no news reports of vaccinations taking place any where in Sarawak the last 2 days.

The latest in the issue vaccines is the unilateral decision made by the Sarawak government to disallow the use of the Astra Zeneca vaccine in Sarawak.

The some total of all the above is this: The GPS government of Sarawak, the SDMC and the PN federal have failed Sarawakians, completely. Only can only imagine for how long more can Sarawakians  cope with the hardships we are going through now.

Kerajaan GPS- Kau Berjalan Menuju Kearah kegelapan Ke? (Bahasa)

Kerajaan GPS- Kau Berjalan Menuju Kearah Kegelapan Ke?

Perjumpaan sosial, sejak dulu lagi sampai ke bulan Mac 2020 tidak pernah dikenali sebagai punca penyakit berjangkit atau penyebar penyakit berjangkit di Sarawak. Dari fasa awal gejala Covid-19 di Sarawak sehingga ke sekarang, kita telah melihat di surat khabar dan kaca televisyen pesanan dari pihak berwajib bahawa penjarakan sosial dan kawalan orang ramai adalah penting dalam usaha membendung penyebaran Covid-19 tetapi tidak pernah kita dengar perjumpaan sosial adalah punca virus ini. Pada mulanya, nampak ada kefahaman mengenai punca sebenar virus ini dikalangan ahli kerajaan dan juga dikalangan kakitangan kerajaan yang ditugas membendung Covid-19 namun sekarang seolah olah kefahaman itu sudah hilang. Begitu juga naratif kerajaan GPS di Sarawak berkenaan dengan Covid-19.

https://dayakdaily.com/social-gatherings-not-allowed-in-covid-19-red-and-orange-zones/

Punca penyebaran gejala Covid-19 di Sarawak adalah daripada mereka yang dijangkiti virus ini. Mereka yang dijangkit akan dikenalpasti selepas melalui ujian pemeriksaan kesihatan. Seterusnya, proses mengesan kenalan yang mempunyai gejala jangkitan dibuat dan tindakan susulan akan memutus rantaian penyebaran dikalangan kategori ini. Kumpulan  satu lagi ialah kategori mereka yang dipanggil tidak simptomatik.

Bagi mereka yang selalu baca laporan harian kes Covid-19 di Sarawak, sering kali akan mendengar istilah pesakit simptomatik yang digunakan.

Untuk pengetahuan pembaca yang kurang arif dengan istilah tidak simptomatik, ini adalah kategori orang yang dijangkiti Covid-19 tetapi nampak sihat dan tidak ada sebarang tanda jangkitan. Penyebaran tidak simptomatik adalah penyebaran yang berpunca daripada orang yang sudah dijangkiti tetapi nampak sihat dan tiada tanda jangkitan.

Dari kes positif baru dan dari kluster baru yang dilaporkan setiap hari, kita tahu bahawa banyak orang yang tidak simptomatik di Sarawak sedang bergerak dan berleluasa diantara daerah dan diantara zon. Kumpulan-kumpulan ini menghadiri majlis atau perjumpaan sosial dan dalam proses aktiviti yang mereka lalukan, Covid-19 telahpun tersebar kepada orang lain yang ada di majlis atau perjumpaan dan dari itu timbul kluster baharu.

Boleh kah orang tidak simptomatik diuji dan dikenal pasti, dikuarantin dan diubati? Tentu sekali boleh, dengan proses yang dikenali sebagai proses saringan atau ujian beramai-ramai. Pernahkah saringan Covid-19 dibuat di Sarawak? Memang pernah, tetapi dengan cara yang tidak cukup berkesan untuk memutus rantaian penyebaran virus tersebut.

Satu daripada proses yang amat kritikal dalam usaha membendung Covid-19 di Sarawak ialah saringan beramai ramai diseluruh Sarawak iaitu semua yang tinggal di Sarawak sekarang disaring, sebaik baiknya proses dilakukan secara serentak. Tentu sekali ini bukan satu usaha yang mudah tetapi dengan fokus dan komitmen yang tinggi ia boleh dibuat dengan jayanya.

SDMC mempunyai kebijaksanaan yang mencukupi pada awal nya dan telah membahagikan kawasan Sarawak kepada Zon. Setiap Zonpula diberi kod berwarna. Kawalan penggerakan penduduk diantara daerah dan zon juga diperkuatkuasakan. Kerangka kerja dan kawalan yang wajar semua telahpun lengkap untuk kerajaan GPS dan KKM menjalankan saringan beramai ramai. Persoalan nya, kenapa perancangan semua ini tidak digunakan?

Kedudukan sebagai juara dalam penyebaran Covid-19 bukanlah satu yang boleh dibanggakan. Ia adalah satu tanda bahawa kerajaan Sarawak tidak mempunyai sebarang kemahiran untuk menangani pandemik Covid-19. Lebih dahsyat dari itu ialah peningkatan kes positif Covid-19 akan mengakibatkan lebih banyak lagi kes kematian. Sehingga petang semalam, 4hb April 2021, Sarawak mencatat 17,554 kes positif dan 114 kes kematian. Kes positif baharu untuk semalam sahaja sebanyak 419, jumlah paling tinggi didalam negara sekali lagi.

https://covid19.sarawak.com.my/

Masanya sudah tiba untuk Douglas Uggah meletak jawatan sebagai pengerusi Jawatankuasa Pengurusan Bencana Negeri (JPBN) dan diganti dengan seorang profesional dari bidang perubatan atau ahli sains. Ahli politik, terutama sekali ahli politik GPS tidak harus menerajui JPBN.

Akhir kata kepada pemimpin Sarawak yang sekarang : Adalah wajar dan juga wajib SDMC serta KKM menjalankan saringan beramai-ramai dengan kadar segera dan mengenal pasti semua yang dijangkiti Covid-19 tetapi tidak simptomatik. Kehidupan warga Sarawak cuma akan kembali ke tahap normal apabila pandemik ini berakhir. Jika anda tidak berbuat sedemikian, anda akan bertanggungjawab dengan sepenuhnya ke atas setiap kematian baru disebabkan oleh Covid-19. Sekian, harap maklum.

GPS Government Of Sarawak - Are You Walking In Darkness?

 GPS Government Of Sarawak - Are You Walking In Darkness?

Douglas Uggah

‘Since early 2021 until today, most of the positive cases detected in the various communities in Sarawak have stemmed from attending social events’…quote Datu  Amar Douglas Uggah, Chairman of the SDMC and DCM of Sarawak.

https://dayakdaily.com/social-gatherings-not-allowed-in-covid-19-red-and-orange-zones/

Social gatherings in Sarawak, from earliest recorded times until March 2020, have never been a cause of infectious disease or the spread of infectious disease. In the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic there was a wide publicity campaign to educate the members of the public that social distancing and crowd control were essential in the efforts to break the transmission chain of the virus but never was it said social gatherings were the cause of the spread of the disease. There was understanding of the real cause in the early days but lately the GPS government seems to have lost that understanding and the narratives.

The source of the virus that is spreading in Sarawak (and everywhere else) is the person(s) who has been infected by the disease. Some of these people are identified when they develop the symptoms, are tested and found to be Covid-19 positive. Contact tracings and follow-ups actions have broken the chain of transmission by this category. The other group consists of asymptomatic people in Sarawak.

Those who read the SDMC’s daily report on the Covid-19 pandemic in Sarawak cannot fail but notice that quite regularly there there mention of asymptomatic Covid-19 patients.

For the benefit of Sarawakians who are unfamiliar with the term, an asymptomatic laboratory-confirmed case is a person infected with COVID-19 WHO DOES NOT develop symptoms. Asymptomatic transmission refers to transmission of the virus from a person, who does not develop symptoms i.e asymptomatic people.

These asymptomatic people who are freely moving about in Sarawak, travelling between districts and going to social gatherings like birthday parties, religious gatherings, weddings, wakes and funerals etc etc. The presence of these asymptomatic peoples in such social gatherings causes those gatherings to become Covid-19 clusters. They are the main cause for the spread of the virus now.

Is there a way to screen and identify these asymptomatic people, quarantine and treat them? Of course there is. It is called mass screening. Has mass screening been done in Sarawak? Yes but not in ways that have made the screenings into an effective tool for breaking the transmission.

The one ingredient that was and still is missing is mass screening on a ‘global ‘ scale in Sarawak. In simple terms, screen every one residing in Sarawak. Can it be done? Of course it can be done. It may be difficult. There may be constraints in the requisite manpower and in the short term, mass screening exercise will make it tougher for the local business communities but it can be done.

The framework for mass screening is already in place. The SDMC obviously have enough wisdom to divide Sarawak into zones, color code the zones and restrict movement of people between zones. The basic foundation for mass screening was already in place. They could have isolated the zones and conduct the mass screening zone by zone and identify all the positive and asymptomatic people as they moved through the zones. What was it that prevented them from optimising what they have already put in place?

Being the champion in Covid-19 transmission in Malaysia is not something to be proud of. It speaks of incompetence. Worse still, the continuing presence of the virus of epidemic scale will be accompanied by Covid-19 related deaths. On the last count, Sarawak recorded a total of 17,554 positive cases and 114 Covid-19 deaths. There were  419 new positive cases yesterday, the highest in the whole of Malaysia, again!

https://covid19.sarawak.com.my/

I think the time has come for Douglas Uggah to step down as Chairman of SDMC and a medical professional or a scientist  be appointed to head the SDMC. A politician, particularly one from the ruling government should not be asked to helm the SDMC.

And now, the most crucial part : Can the SDMC and the KKM do the global mass screening now before this pandemic get even worse! Every death subsequent to this will be on your head if you do not do what you should be doing to break the transmission and stop the virus in its track.

COVID-19 - CM Abang Johari, Don’t Wait, Buy The Vaccine Now! (English Version)

 COVID-19 - CM Abang Johari, Don’t Wait, Buy The Vaccine Now!

"It’s painful… who said it wasn’t painful? The whole body felt like I was having nerve pain. You felt fatigued and weak, and if it attacked your head like me, Allah… it felt like your head was going to explode ” This very graphic description of sufferings of a COVID.19 patient came from Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainuddin.

https://www.bernama.com/en/general/news.php?id=1927836

He was tested positive for COVID.19 in the 2nd week of Jan 2021.

Everywhere around the world the experiences of other COVID.19 patients who survived to talk about their experiences with COVID.19 speaks of the excruciating pain they had to endure as they fought for their lives.

https://www.voanews.com/science-health/coronavirus-outbreak/covid-19-patients-share-stories-suffering-hope-and-despair

Bernama news portal today (3rd Feb 2021) reported that international investors had withdrawn RM535.5 million worth of investments from our local stock market the previous weeks, on fears that the COVID.19 vaccine roll out globally may be slow. A slow roll out of the vaccine will retard global economic growth. A slow roll out will also retard Malaysia’s recovery.

https://www.bernama.com/en/business/news.php?id=1927608

The two episodes mentioned above are just 2 examples of the deep impact of the COVID.19 pandemic on people and on the economy.

In the battle against COVID.19, where are the areas on concerns for Sarawakians? So as not to miss or forget what has been said or done by the Malaysian government, let us recall a few key points.

Malaysia’s population for 2020 was projected at 32.7 million. It has been reported that for ‘highly effective’ vaccine like Pfizer-BioNTech, countries like Britain are giving every citizen 2 doses. Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Khairy Jamaluddin and the the DG of Health Dr. Noor Hisham have said that the vaccine that the Malaysian government is procuring is the Pfizer-BioNtech.

It is important to note that until today the World Health Organization (WHO) has not been able to determine what is the herd immunity threshold for COVID.19  and so we must assume that the entire population of Malaysia must be vaccinated against COVID.19. However Khairy Jamaluddin had earlier said the government expect to vaccinate 80% of all Malaysians or roughly 26.2 million people 

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/world/2021/02/02/study-suggests-pfizer039s-covid-19-vaccine-less-effective-against-south-african-variant

https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/herd-immunity-lockdowns-and-covid-19

https://codeblue.galencentre.org/2021/01/27/malaysia-targets-75000-daily-jabs-in-initial-covid-19-vaccine-rollout/

In a news report carried by The Star today we are informed that the Malaysia has purchased 12.8 million doses. At 2 dose per person, that would be enough for 6.4 million people, including 500,000 front liners. The same news report also said Malaysia is committed to purchase another 12.2 million doses. It would do us well to note that commit to purchase is not exactly the same as purchase. If the purchase is confirmed, that batch will be enough for another 6.1 million Malaysians. 

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2021/02/02/first-batch-of-pfizer-vaccine-to-arrive-on-feb-26

https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2021/01/657961/500k-frontliners-receive-first-dose-covid-19-vaccine-q1-2021

What we can conclude from the information already in public domain now is this: Firstly, based on the Malaysia’s population estimates for 2020 which  pegged the population at 32.7 million people, we are looking at roughly 13.7 million people who may not have access to the government provided vaccine under the first phase of the vaccination plan. This 13.7 million Malaysians will have to wait for the second phase which most likely will only be in 2022.

"The question now is how does Sarawak fit into this plan? Will the vaccination be equitably done or will Sarawak be left behind?"

With this in mind, once again we call on the CM Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari and the GPS government of Sarawak to act immediately. Buy the vaccine now before market forces makes it difficult to buy it at an early stage. Depending completely on the federal government may prove to be a serious error in judgment as any delay or insufficient supply will not only pose serious danger to Sarawakians but also retard efforts to rehabilitate Sarawak’s economy.

We do not now want any Sarawakians to undergo what Hamzah Zainuddin went through and we do not want any Sarawakians to add to the statistics on poverty in Sarawak or continue to remain in the B40 category because their source income is lost to COVID.19. The situation with Sarawakians struggling to put food on the table is already at critical level.

https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2021/02/03/thousands-on-brink-of-starvation-in-sibu-says-dayak-group/