Published on: Sunday, May 17, 2009 |
Tuaran: The increase in the price of rice is an opportunity for farmers to go into large-scale rice cultivation, said Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Hajiji Noor.
Speaking at the district-level Kaamatan Festival here, Saturday, he said with proper organisation and planning, the yield will no doubt bring lucrative returns to the farmers.
"It is high time for the farmers here to realise the importance of the agriculture sector," he said, noting that there is an abundance of land suitable for rice cultivation here but were left idle.
He recalled that not too long ago, rice fields could be seen along the road from Berunggis to Topokon in Tenghilan but sadly, this was no longer so.
"If one cannot use the land commercially, then use it for one's personal consumption," he said, adding it was important not to leave arable land to waste.
Hajiji said 65 per cent of the people here were involved in agriculture, followed by fisheries (15 per cent), trading (11 per cent), services (five per cent) as well as tourism and manufacturing, with two per cent each.
On the complaints by some farmers that irrigation problems hampered their activities, he said the matter had long been a problem and he had referred it to the relevant authorities with the hope it would be resolved as soon as possible.
In another matter, he suggested idle lands be planted with Gaharu or sandalwood, saying the venture promised lucrative returns.
Touching on the Kaamatan celebration, Hajiji said the celebration brought together all the races of different religion in a harmonious environment.
"I hope we will use the Kaamatan celebration to further strengthen unity, in line with the this year's theme 'Together, We Mould a Better Future'," he said.
Also present were Assistant Youth and Sports Minister, Datuk Jahid Jahim, Member of Parliament, Datuk Wilfred Bumburing, Kiulu Assemblyman, Datuk Louis Rampas, and invited guests.
.jpg)
No comments:
Post a Comment