KUCHING: Premier Tan Sri Abang Johari Openg has assured that the Parti Gabungan Sarawak (GPS) government will continue to provide the necessary funding for houses of worship, through the Unit For Other Religions (Unifor).
As a Muslim, he believes in the basic principle that the "more we give, the more we will be blessed by the Almighty, which I believe is also found in all our religious beliefs."
"Since the establishment of Unifor in 2017, our Sarawak government has given a total allocation of RM385 million to numerous places of worship, such as temples and churches reaffirming its commitment to inclusivity to other religious houses of worship across Sarawak," he said in his speech read at the Thanksgiving ceremony held in conjunction with the 78th birthday of Governor Tun Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar last night.
His speech was read by Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian.
The premier assured the state government will continue to allocate funds because this is its promise to the people as has been proven in the past seven years.
He said 807 projects amounting to RM109.8 million have been completed and Unifor grants have funded 616 more ongoing projects totalling RM120.5 million.
"The financial assistance is to facilitate physical development and upgrading of their houses of worship, to ensure that these sacred institutions provide optimal comfort for worshippers," Abang Johari said.
He said the financial grants are given to assist in the completion of churches and temples when their budgets are insufficient, such as when building and maintenance costs exceed their funds.
The premier also said GPS will continue to forge ahead and pledge its support to the unity government under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, to ensure political stability.
"With the prevailing political stability, peace and harmony in the country, it will be easier for us to attract foreign investors to our country, including here in Sarawak.
"But at the same time, GPS will always uphold the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) to ensure that our rights in the Federation of Malaysia will not be eroded and to continue to fight for our greater autonomy," he said.
"Sarawak is fortunate to have Wan Junaidi, who is a steadfast defender of our rights as per MA63, especially when he was the Law Minister of Malaysia," he said.
Abang Johari applauded the governor's farsightedness and tenacity in fighting for the state's rights.
'To date, we have been able to have more financial autonomy with the income from the State Sales Tax (SST), since it was implemented in 2019.
"With additional income from SST and other economic generators, we have been able to implement countless projects worth billions of ringgit that will benefit the people, including the financing of the countless number of houses of worship such as churches and temples for our devotees and members of the Buddhism, Taoism, Baha'ism, Sikhism and Hinduism faiths across Sarawak," he said.
He also assured that the state government will not stray from what legally belongs to Sarawak within the context of MA63.
He said the Oil Mining Ordinance (OMO) 1958 existed before the formation of Malaysia on Sept 16, 1963.
"As such, through OMO 1958, our rights to SST will continue to be implemented, as Sarawak still needs a lot of funding to continue its development agenda under our Post-Covid Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030 whereby social inclusivity is part of this strategy to achieve developed status by 2030.
"So, with better deals from the federal government through MA63, we will be able to develop Sarawak much faster, and of course, this will include building more houses of worship based on the increasing needs of our people, be it in the urban or rural areas.