SIBU: Thirty-one longhouses in Dudong received special Minor Rural Project (MRP) grants yesterday (July 19), in what the Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) described as the first phase of a wider assistance programme aimed at supporting rural communities across the constituency.
The grant cheques, allocated by Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian, who is also SUPP President, were presented by SUPP Dudong Branch chairman Councillor Wong Ching Yong at the party’s Dudong branch premises here on behalf of Dr Sim.
Wong said the financial assistance reflected the party’s continued commitment to addressing the needs of rural communities, stressing that the significance of the grants extended beyond their monetary value.
“Although the amount allocated to each recipient is modest, it represents our continued concern for and commitment to the people living in Dudong’s longhouse communities,” he said.
He noted that Dudong is home to more than 200 longhouses, with the 31 recipients forming the first batch of beneficiaries. Distribution to the remaining eligible longhouses, he added, will be carried out in stages.
Beyond the grant presentation, Wong used the occasion to outline several commitments he said he would pursue should he be elected as Member of Parliament for Lanang in the next General Election.
Among the pledges were increasing annual allocations under the MRP and Rural Transformation Programme (RTP), expanding financial incentives for students pursuing tertiary education, providing travel assistance for students, introducing funeral assistance, and extending aid to low-income families.
He also called on voters to continue supporting Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), arguing that stronger backing for the coalition would enable greater federal and state development allocations to flow into Dudong and the wider Lanang parliamentary constituency.
The cheque presentation ceremony was attended by SUPP members, community leaders, and representatives from the beneficiary longhouses, marking the beginning of the latest round of rural development assistance for the area.
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