Two Ranau villages to be excised from reserve
Published on: Monday, June 02, 2025
Published on: Mon, Jun 02, 2025
By: Clarence Dol Text Size: Abidin and others show the thumbs up for the decision to excise the two villages from Forest Reserve as well as for the Kaamatan celebration in Kg Ponulangon. RANAU: The State Government has agreed to remove two villages here, namely Kg Ponulangon and Kg Walou, from the Forest Reserve area. Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister, Datuk Abidin Madingkir, said the matter was decided following several meetings with the Director of Forestry and Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Hj Noor. 'I am pleased to announce that, in principle, the Chief Minister has given approval. 'This means that the villagers can apply for land ownership and the land can be cultivated for farming, building houses and so on, without interference from the Forest Department. 'However, this approval will be brought to the State Assembly for ratification,' said the Paginatan Assemblyman. He added that in this regard, the Forest Department will go down to the field to identify how much land will be removed from the Forest Reserve 'As the Wakil Rakyat, I will continue to strive to realise the aspirations of the villagers just like our efforts to realise the construction of a road from Kg Walou, Kg Ponulangon to Kg Tinanom. 'On the needs of the Mini Dewan in Kg Ponulangon, we submitted an application for the construction of a Mini Dewan to the District Office last year,' he said. 'I will instruct UPPM to refer back to the application. Hopefully we will be able to solve this matter this year too.' Abidin said this while officiating the Kg Ponulangon-level Kaamatan Festival held at the Balai Raya Kg Ponulangon, recently. He commended the leaders and residents of Kg Ponulangon for organising the village-level Kaamatan Festival. 'The theme 'Kaamatan for All' is significant because now Kaamatan is celebrated by all levels of society regardless of race or religious differences. 'For the KDMR community, Kaamatan is celebrated because we are grateful for the good harvest. All of this is a gift from God,' he said. According to him, the Kaamatan Festival is held every year because it is a local culture that must be preserved for future generations. Apart from that, he said, Kaamatan can unite the people. Meanwhile, Abidin said the government has revived the Sabah Padi and Rice Board with the aim of increasing local paddy production to reduce dependence on imported rice which is still at 72pc. He called on the residents of Kg Ponulangon to continue to support Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS) in the upcoming PRN17 for the continuation of the GRS government's development programme through the Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) development plan. 'For our part, we will continue to serve the people because there are still many unfinished business. 'We are confident in the strong support of the residents of Kg Ponulangon,' he said. Also present were Special Officer to Datuk Abidin Madingkir, Juis Konsuling, CDO Jipili Sigal, KAN Dualis Porodtong, KAN Sawalin Zakaria, KAN Kapilin Hj Surop, Mukim Paus Developer, Jasni Maston and local leaders. * Follow us on our official WhatsApp channel and Telegram for breaking news alerts and key updates! * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available.
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