Labuan’s per capita income highest?
Published on: Sunday, October 27, 2019
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This means an average family of two having a monthly income of RM10,000. Compare this to the average monthly income of Sabahans which is merely RM1,000 and the national monthly income per capita of RM3,700.
This claim of Labuan having the highest income per capita is definitely false and fabricated by those in authority in Labuan. However, the bigger picture has to do with the recent development projects submitted by local and foreign investors that were not entertained or rejected by the Labuan Authority and Putrajaya. This only implies that the administrators feel Labuan is economically fully developed.
The “pleasantry presentation” claimed the average annual income per capita in Labuan to be over RM100,000. However, the presentation is contrary to the fact that Labuan over the last few years had actually gone back to what it was 50 years ago.
The population contracted from 100,000 in 2016 to 60,000 today. It has also been said that from time to time people had approached their Member of Parliament for money to buy milk for their children, confirming all these pleasantry submissions to be totally false and fabricated.
In the last 40 years, despite Labuan being administered by CEOs and Board Members from Malaya, except the Chairman, not a single economic project has materialised that employs thousands of local people.
Those projects that do, were introduced by the Berjaya government – sponge iron, methanol, supply base and Labuan Shipyards which has since been killed by Federal bureaucrats.
The only significant progress made by the Federal Government was to increase the number of civil servants from 100 during the Berjaya Government in 1984 to 3,000 today with at least 90pc of them coming from Malaya.
Just take the Land and Survey Department during the Berjaya era, it had only one Director. There are now three departments – Land, Survey and Town Planner. Each having its own Director-General.
All these 3,000 over civil servants earn not less than RM6,000.00 a month. This amounts to RM18,000,000.00 a month of cash injection into the Labuan economy. This is the only sustainable economy introduced by the Malayan Officers.
It has been almost 40 years since the administration of Labuan was handed to the Federal Government.
According to ex-CM Tan Sri Harris Salleh, whose government made Labuan a part of the Federal Territory, the Federal Government had the Power and Funds to make Labuan an International Island City.
Tun Mahathir who took over Labuan agreed with Harris that the Federal Government would turn Labuan into an International Island City.
Currently, everything to do with Labuan is administered from Kuala Lumpur other than road improvements and water supply, there is nothing else.
Regrettably, both Tun Mahathir and Harris failed in their dreams to make Labuan an International Island City.
To recollect the last 40 years, other than improvements to roads, water supply and the building of a new Hospital (which is reportedly short of doctors and staff), the following projects were approved and widely promoted as economic development projects by the Federal Government:
l Declaring Labuan as International Financial Centre and building three large buildings. These buildings have not been occupied since completion in the late 1985.
However, immediately after making Labuan an International Financial Centre, the Federal Government ignored Labuan and allowed Bankers and Financial Executives to operate from Kuala Lumpur, just maintaining name and empty office in Labuan. The reason presumably because Labuan remained a fishing village (Patau Patau) and is not conducive for Bankers and Financial Executives whose are in suit and attire and James Bond bag in hand, didn’t mix well with the “shabby looking fishermen”.
l Approval of three famous economic projects which the Malayan Officer presented to the Prime Minister during their visit to Labuan. These Mega and Billion Ringgit Projects are:
a) Approval for 20,000 acres at Membedai for commercial and housing to a Philippines Company. Estimated investment of RM21 billion;
b) Approval for Oil and Gas Complex at Pulau Daat to a Chinese Company investment of RM6 billion;
c) The Labuan mainland Bridge investment of RM6 billion.
Not bad for a total of RM333 billion and the creation of over 100,000 jobs.
Regrettably, none of these approved projects announced by Prime Minister after Prime Minister took off the ground or even started “changkuling”.
Labuan is only 22,000 acres in total area with 60,000 population surely with the 3,000 high powered Malayan Civil Servants can convert Labuan into “Little Singapore”.
Nevertheless, Labuan people should look to the future under the new Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Fary Akmal Osman. Dr. Fary is determined and progressive and is fully aware that Labuan is urgently in need of some economic development and investment.
There were several billion dollar economic development projects recently announced to jump start the Labuan Tourism Industry.
These Billion Ringgit projects proposed to Kiamsam for Commercial and Housing and Tourist Complex, hopefully will be approved by Labuan Corporation and Putrajaya.
However, if Putrajaya has the mentality that Labuan with the highest per capita income, there is no need for any economic developments – that is the end of the story.
At the same time, Labuan people must not get carried away by the ‘pleasantry presentations’ by Malayan officers to Ministers and in Putrajaya.
They just want to claim that all is fine in Labuan by having the highest per capita income in Malaysia.
It is important for Labuan to support the new Chief Executive Officer.
Anak Labuan
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