PENAMPANG: The Momogun National Congress (MNC) has not given up seeking official recognition of the term “Momogun” as a collective name for the indigenous peoples of Sabah.
MNC President, Tan Sri Wences Angang, said despite opposition by a small number of Momogun groups, MNC stands by the support and desire of 77 Sabah indigenous NGOs for “Momogun” as their collective name.
“We continue to wait for the State Government to pass the MNC’s resolution to adopt the Momogun Declaration which requires that “Momogun” be placed in Government forms. We have submitted the declaration to the Chief Minister as well as the previous Tuan Yang Terutama Tun Juhar,” he said.
“We also await the actual implementation of the new non-politicised format of the Native Court, manned by permanent and pensionable staffers.”
“If Kadazans, Dusuns, Muruts, Bisayas, Tidongs and Orang Sungais (Paitanics) were to be counted as separate individual groups, their respective numbers would be small and insignificant.
“But if they are counted as a group they will exceed the strong one million mark in Sabah’s population of three million,” he said. “We are now facing a serious existential threat, and for this we will continue our dialogue with the Momogun signatories and other Momogun NGOs to seek ways to counter threats from globalisation.”
He said part of their approach is to seek worldwide recognition by aligning MNC with the International Indigenous Peoples’ Movement.
“MNC is organizing for the third time the annual International Indigenous Peoples’ Day to be held in Tenom next month.”
Wences, a former assemblyman and Deputy Chief Minister, who is from the Tatana ethnic group, said MNC is also looking into the possibility of organizing the World Rural Development Day, beginning next year in collaboration with the Momogun signatories and other Momogun NGOs.
He stressed that MNC must take advantage of the international day which was declared by the United Nation’s General Assembly last July 6 to reaffirm the UN’s unwavering commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
He said MNC is also working to enhance the teaching of the English language being carried out by Institute for Indigenous Economic Progress (INDEP), under its “Be an English Speaker Today” (BEST) program.
“English is the crucial language to enable Momoguns to gain high paying employment and to participate effectively in global affairs,” he stressed.
