Jumping the gun - Warisan's first 100 days

What I hope Warisan's first 100 days will be like?

I have asked this question, via one of my more active & political social media sites. However, no one, absolutely, no one responded. Is it irrelevant? Is it unimportant to them?

These are people, who, in their vigourous discourse on political news, have no view of what must come after a "new" Government is installed. Either at PutraJaya or in Sabah.

Does that infer that it is now up to the Government of-the-day to form policy, as-they-like? Do what they like? And, the citizens job is just to assess the progress or otherwise? Engagement is over until we approach the next elections? We, voters, will take them to task for not doing what we had hoped for but have never articulated any viewpoint. We expect them to be all-seeing Gods that know their minds & hearts.

If so, it is a tall order for any politician, who have no idea of the aspirations of the people they govern. Is this Sabahans' idea of democracy at work?

Far from it. The citizens are expected to constantly engage our leaders in the governing of our State or Country. To start, the first 100 days will determine the direction Sabah will take should Warisan take over Sabah. Here is my listing of a "to-do" list for Sabah, to progress towards a state of some achievement & provide hope for the future for our young generation.

*****************
POLICY OBJECTIVES

1. A greatest asset of a state is its human resource. Sabah must develop current & future human capital to have the skill sets required to engage & compete within Malaysia and the world.

2. Sabah needs to retain its talent pool within the state. To achieve this, it must provide jobs to its citizens with good prospects for advancement. The next step is to attract back to Sabah, its diaspora which would have additional talent and world experience to complement home-grown talent.

3. Enterprises are formed with hard capital investment. Sabah, with its largely depleted natural resources, need to seek out investment capital from outside the state. Sabahans must not be shy to court capital investment from any source, including West Malaysia, South-East Asia, China & the rest of the world.

4. Communications & connectivity is priority for the efficient movement of goods & services within the state. This is an ongoing project that must be made more efficient with added quality. Seek talent in the implementation of the latest technology to conquer our complex terrain.

5. Reliable utilities supply must continue to be extended into all parts of Sabah, utilising a mix of traditional methods and innovative methods developed over the years, embracing the use of multi-energy sources.

6. Food security is a very important concern for the world in the immediate future. Thus, the agricultural sector must not be neglected, rather, an urgent need to be expanded & made more efficient whilst using sustainable methods to retain the richness of the soil.

7. Unsustainable agricultural methods should be phased out. Monoculture should be re-assessed.

8. The tourism potential & durability of Sabah nature tourism means the preservation of indigenous eco-systems. Not a patchwork of forests but sustainable swathes of territory dedicated to its sustainability.

9. Other aspects of the tourism industry, with emphasis on quality rather than quantity should be initiated. Our diversity of ethnic origins & customs is a strength that is not being fully exploited by our tourism industry.

10. The final outlook that needs to be addressed is the role of industry in Sabah. Certain heavy & base industries are certainly required to sustain a modern economy. However, confining such naturally polluting industries to certain parts of the state is required. Other industry & manufacturing facilities should also be allocated appropriate zones. However, the main emphasis is the development of "future"  & service industries in Sabah. These industries will lead Sabah to be an acknowledged player of the future.

I am sure that there are more priorities that Sabah needs to address & provide policy guidance on. However, the first 100 days must see action in the major priorities and those that can be implemented immediately.

How each of these 10 general guidelines may be brought to fruition will follow with the next posting. In the meantime, constructive feedback is welcome.