KUCHING: The authorities must reduce red tape in order to boost the economy post Covid-19, said Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Jemut Masing.
He stated that the establishment of Sarawak Economic Action Council (SEAC) was aimed at creating concrete economic proposals which are holistic and comprehensive as Sarawak emerges from the devastation caused by Covid-19 pandemic.
“Among the proposed ideas are to optimise the use of the state’s natural resources in the energy sector, create jobs via infrastructures development so the money can start rolling into the economy.
“In allowing this to happen quickly, the government must reduce red tape (official rules and processes that seem unnecessary and delay results).
“The ‘walk in the park’ approach in doing business post Covid-19 will not work anymore,” he said after attending SEAC video conferencing yesterday.
Quoting a professor who participated in the video conferencing, Masing said Sarawak should focus on circular business model.
“The professor suggested that the state’s business model shouldn’t be linear but circular, whereby we produce, we use and then reuse. In this way we can keep our environment clean while attaining the sustainability factor,” he said.
He noted that the professor had also emphasised that Sarawak had the best social relationship in the country and must be maintained.
He said for Sarawak to recover for the devastation caused by Covid-19 and achieve a developed status by 2030, the state needed to put all these factors in place.
“Sarawak must put politics and other differences behind. Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg is trying his best to put Sarawak in a position where every Sarawakian will benefit from the state’s growth by 2030.
“I sincerely believe that the chief minister is trying his best. All we need to do is to give him our full support,” he urged.
The video conferencing was moderated by prominent Malaysians namely Tan Sri Wahid Omar (non-executive chairman of Bursa Malaysia), Datuk Seri Idris Jala (chief executive officer of Performance Management and Delivery Unit), Prof Dr Fatimah Karri (Universiti Malaya) and Prof Dr Madeline Berma (Human Rights Commission of Malaysia).
