EWON CALLS ON HIS MINISTRY’S GLCS TO DELIVER LARGER DIVIDENDS TO STATE GOVT

KOTA KINABALU, Dec 4 (Bernama) -- Sabah Deputy Chief Minister III Datuk Ewon Benedick has called on government-linked companies (GLCs) under his ministry to increase their revenues so they can pay higher dividends to the government.

The Sabah Minister of Industry, Entrepreneurship and Transport said these GLCs, including the Sabah Economic Development Corporation (SEDCO), are vital for developing entrepreneurship and investment in the state.

“I appreciate all the efforts made so far. However, I also hope that the agencies and subsidiaries under SEDCO can generate greater successes so that revenue, in the form of dividends, can be increased.

“Dividends are important for Sabah’s development, whether returned to this ministry or used for other development purposes such as poverty eradication, education, public welfare, and so on,” he told the reporter after his first visit to SEDCO House today.

Touching on cooperation between the state and federal governments, Ewon said it should be optimised through existing coordination platforms, particularly the Sabah Entrepreneurship Development Coordination Committee, to ensure the state’s development needs receive proper consideration in the federal budget.

He said his primary focus now is to ensure more Sabahans have stable incomes through entrepreneurship and a more active job market.

“My major priority in this ministry is to develop more Sabahans to have steady incomes, whether through entrepreneurship or by working for companies owned by local entrepreneurs.

“I don’t want Sabah to continue being associated with the poorest districts and Sabahans being classified as poor. Therefore, developing entrepreneurship is one way to ensure all Sabahans, including graduates and young people, have job opportunities and incomes,” he said.

Ewon added that if all plans are well executed, Sabah can increase its people’s incomes within the next five years and move beyond the stigma of being the poorest state.

At the same time, he said the state budget, to be tabled on Dec 12, is expected to maintain the existing plan’s foundations as it was prepared before the formation of the new cabinet.

-- BERNAMA