By NIK NAIZI HUSIN | Mar 12, 2010
Adnan: Orang asli are not neglected
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Light moment: Adnan and State Orang Asli Affairs Commmittee chairman Datuk Wan Rosdi Wan Ismail (right) doing the sewang dance during a meeting in Kuantan on Monday.
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niknaizi@thestar.com.my
KUANTAN: Living in remote areas in Pahang is one of the reasons why orang asli groups don’t enjoy good living standards compared to other communities.
Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Adnan Yaakob said the orang asli were intelligent but led a low-profile life and were lost in the mainstream of development.
He said they could have opportunities by participating in state development programmes but were left out because of the inaccessibility of their communities.
“However, the state has not neglected them and has provided opportunities in all aspects of living including education and socio-economic development,” Adnan said during a meeting with orang asli tok batins (village elders) at his official residence here on Monday.
He said the only way for them to have a better life was to change their attitude and lifestyle.
Adnan said his late grandfather was a friend of the orang asli community in Hutan Lipur Lentang when he lived at Janda Baik in Bentong district.
“He hosted the orang asli who visited at our home. When we offered them drinks, they wanted to be served with tempurung (coconut shells) rather than cups. This showed they were humble and down to earth,” he said.
The orang asli could live in any situation as they are adept in wilderness survival skills, he added.
Citing the example of a helicopter crash in Genting Highlands a few years ago, the Mentri Besar said the only survivor was an orang asli.
Touching on the number of indigenous people in the state, Adnan said statistics showed that the orang asli made up of 4% of the 1.5 million population.
“We have an exco member to look after the orang asli and voice their needs during the weekly meetings.”
The state provided indigenous people with schemes and programmes with good economic prospects such as Felcra cash-crop projects in rubber and oil palm.
In the schemes, they could earn a fixed income apart from participating in their usual chores like hunting and foraging in the forest and doing odd jobs.
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