KOTA KINABALU – Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor has affirmed the state government’s commitment to end poverty in the state, underlining plans to invest a substantial amount of public funds in housing assistance and various poverty eradication programmes.
In his Maulidur Rasul speech, Hajiji said the state will keep the RM125 million funding for Rumah SMJ housing assistance programme this year while an additional RM175 million will be for numerous programmes such as creating jobs for the poor.
“The state via its Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) secretariat is currently planning and will implement programmes to alleviate entrenched poverty in Sabah.
“The government will also allocate RM175 million for poverty eradication programmes by providing job opportunities to target groups, enabling them to come out of hardcore poverty,” he said at the Sabah-level Maulidur Rasul Celebrations held at the Sabah International Convention Centre, here, today.
A total of 1,500 houses, or around 23 units in each 73 Sabah state constituencies, are to be built under the Rumah SMJ housing aid programme.
The programme was announced in April last year and launched in September of the same year, with a house costing around RM70,000 each.
The funding for the aid is sourced from the state's annual special grant initially and has housed over 100 families to date.
Meanwhile, Hajiji also expressed his appreciation for Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's unwavering commitment to eradicating poverty.
He noted that Anwar’s efforts align with the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and underscored the importance of unity and development within a community or nation.
Earlier, Hajiji, along with the Yang di-Pertua Negeri, Tun Datuk Seri Panglima (Dr) Haji Juhar Datuk Haji Mahiruddin, and thousands of Muslims, took part in a procession from Padang Merdeka to Sabah International Convention Centre, marking the start of the celebration. – The Vibes, September 28, 2023
