Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin today alleged that the Kelantan PAS government did not look after the welfare of the Orang Asli who faced problems pertaining to land titles and encroachment in areas within the Galas state constituency.

 

He said land problems relating to compensation and encroachment should have been resolved by the state government.

The land problems of the Orang Asli would be among the main tasks of the BN candidate, Ab Aziz Yusoff, should he win the by-election for the Galas state seat on Nov 4, he told reporters after attending a programme with the Orang Asli community at Pos Brooke, near Gua Musang.

"I believe if the BN candidate is elected as the state assemblyman here (Galas), he will raise the matter (with the state government)," he said.

In fact, Muhyiddin said land encroachment had also resulted in the river being polluted whereas the river was an important source in the life of the Orang Asli community.

"Problems relating to (land) encroachment should be tackled at the level of the state government, but it appears that this problem is not being attended to," he said.

Muhyiddin said the Kelantan PAS government, on the other hand, was more interested in discussing international and national issues which, according to him, aimed to divert the people's attention from issues which should become their priority.

RM11 mil for Orang Asli

Speaking at a function earlier, the deputy prime minister said the federal government allocated RM10.8 million to look after the welfare of the Orang Asli community in Gua Musang.

He said the allocation via the Orang Asli Affairs Department (JHEOA) included the construction of 200 Public Housing Projects costing RM7.2 million in Galas.

Also present at the function were Deputy Finance Minister Dr Awang Adek Hussin, Deputy Higher Education Minister Saifuddin Abdullah, the BN candidate for the Galas by-election, Ab Aziz Yusoff, and the Pos Brooke Village Development and Security Committee chairman Rashid Akoh.

At the function, Muhyiddin, who is also the education minister, agreed in principle to build a secondary school in Pos Brooke for the convenience of the local community and those in the surrounding areas.

The Galas state constituency has 1,889 Orang Asli voters at Pos Balar, Pos Hendrop, Pos Bihai, Pos Hau and Pos Brooke.

- Bernama