Murut woman journeys three hours to sell produce at Tenom Tamu

Kota Kinabalu: Nora Lakiu undertakes a three-hour journey once a week from Kemabong to Tenom town to sell her “tuhau” (etlingera coccinea or wild ginger) produce at the weekly market here.

Every Wednesday, she leaves home at 2am, lugging with her the produce of her land, including tuhau, bunga kantan and pucuk rotan, to reach the site of the weekly market before sunrise.

The 27-year-old mother of three said the tuhau plants thrive on her six-hectare piece of land.

“It is easy to take care of tuhau plants. Just plant them and they reap a big harvest,”, said Nora, when met here Wednesday at the Tamu Pekan Tenom, located in the interiors of Sabah about 150km south of Kota Kinabalu,

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Nora, who hails from the Murut tribe, said she usually takes a stack of one-metre-long tuhau plants to sell at the market. She removes their skins, cuts them into pieces, and sells them for RM3 per packet.

Besides selling her produce at Tenom town, Nora said she trades at Kemabong every Saturday too.

Meanwhile, Jovilin Jamin, 13, from Kampung Tumantalik, also sells vegetables picked from a forest area near her home.

The second of five siblings said she usually will trade at the market whenever she is on school break while her father is the one who picks the vegetables

Among the vegetables she has been selling over the past two years include paku pakis, jantung pisang and bungor which are sold for RM2 a bundle.

“I come here to sell the vegetables from 5 am or 6.30 am to noon, and they usually sell out,” said Jovilin, who aspires to be a lawyer.

Meanwhile, Saidah Buatan, 35, from Kampung Sapong, has been selling freshwater fish at the site for the past 10 years.

She also sells sago made from tapioca.

She said the fish are caught from Sungai Padas, known for its variety of freshwater fish species such as ikan betutu, ikan salap and ikan pelian, and sold for RM10 a packet.

“I bring about 30 plastic bags of fish, and they are usually get sold,” she said, adding that other fish is priced at RM25 a kilo.

Mariana Kediding, 60, comes to the weekly market to buy sago made from tapioca.

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She said tapioca is her favourite and a traditional food of her forefathers.

“If you’re not used to it (eating this sago made from tapioca), you may feel hungry quickly, but I am used to it. This used to be the food of our forefathers who lived a hard life,” said Marianna, who lives in Kampung Melalap.

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