Najib Abdul Razak paid a visit to a longhouse in the Rejang valley near Sibu today and gave an asurance the Barisan Nasional (BN) government is committed to improving the living standard of rural folk, especially in Sarawak and Sabah.

The prime minister said the government was aware rural people needed help to improve their lives and that only the BN had the capability to do this.

"The people living outside Sibu need to make a wise choice as to who would be their best candidate to represent them in Sunday's by-election in the parliamentary constituency in order to protect their future," he said.