Sarawak Chief Minister Adenan Satem has joked that it is perhaps time for Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak to get an Iban wife to further strengthen peninsular ties with Sarawak, after noting the vigorous efforts the PM has done to reach out to the local communities during his recent official visit to the state.

"Thank you, (PM for) visiting the entire of Sarawak and meeting with its people, including the Orang Laut and Iban.

"(Which is why) I advise the PM to find a new wife from among the Iban," he said jokingly while speaking at the official national launch of the Inclusive Malaysia a Digital Nation (Minda), programme at Tebingan Kuching today, as reported by SuaraTV.

Najib is on a three-day official visit in what can be seen as a campaign run prior to the upcoming state elections in the BN safe-deposit state.

Adenan noted that out of all previous prime ministers, Najib visited Sarawak the most, adding that in the six years that Najib has helmed the nation, this is the forty-seventh visit to the state.

"Thanks be to Allah, in the next six to seven years, Sarawak will develop like the peninsula with the completion of the Pan-Borneo Highway.

"Even when the Malaysian economy slowed down because of falling oil prices, from RM120 per barrel to RM30 per barrel, and the federal government facing a dearth of developmental funds, Najib still can spared RM16 billion for Sarawak," Adenan said.

The chief minister said this is more than any other PM had ever done for the state and is something commendable, praising that every time Najib visits Sarawak, it is not with empty hands as the premier always comes bearing gifts.