‘Ease MCO in Sabah’s interior’
Published on: Monday, April 20, 2020
MCO enforcement: Authorities urged to consider easing the MCO in the interior of Sabah.
Kota Kinabalu: Authorities have been urged to consider easing the Movement Control Order (MCO) in the interior of Sabah.In a statement, Pensiangan PKR Branch Chief Raymond Ahuar said he received complaints of villagers being compounded when going out to withdraw their Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN) at banks.
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“These folks, especially from Pensiangan, are given RM1,000 compounds because they carpool to go to the bank.
“For most villagers in the interior, only 10 to 20 per cent own cars.
“(They depended) on public transportation to go to town prior to the MCO. We need to understand that in the interior, there is no access to the Internet and e-hailing service,” he said.
Raymond added that the ban on public transportation has made it difficult for rural villagers to travel to town to withdraw assistance funds in order to buy essential goods, unless they get a ride from others.
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He said the relevant authorities should be more concerned and understanding, as a majority of interior villagers live in poverty.
“They are usually farmers and they sell their own crops. Sometimes, they do cleaning and carpentry work. This group has lost their income since the MCO and depend on the Government’s assistance.
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“There are villagers who have been overlooked and do not receive food aid. Hence, they need the money aid to buy essentials for their families. Instead, what’s sad is they are forced to use the funds to pay for compounds.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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