MP urges survey on idle native land

DAILY EXPRESS NEWS
17 August, 2004

Kota Kinabalu: The Member of Parliament for Putatan, Datuk Dr Marcus Mojigoh, has called for a comprehensive survey on native idle land in the state with a view to developing it. In making the call, he said the survey findings could be used as guidelines for future research and development to further boost the productive use of idle native land.

A systematic database and information on native land, among others, shall include land topography, availability of natural resources, prospects for development and accessibility, he said when presenting a working paper on “Sharing of Concerns and Experiences faced by the Natives” at the forum. Dr Marcus said suitable native title land could also be developed for recreational purposes or eco-tourism. The potential of eco-tourism being developed on suitable native land will provide economic justification for the preservation of these lands from being developed for other purposes that may otherwise jeopardise its environmental aspects and those surrounding it,he said.

For example, a forested hill that served as an important watershed to a village can be turned into a nature trail for recreation purposes where fees might be imposed on its users instead of cutting or clearing the hill, he added. Dr Marcus said native land was the main wealth of the indigenous peoples of Sabah. As such, developing these lands for productive purposes could turn these lands as major sources of income and social development as well as in eradicating poverty among the indigenous community as a whole, he said. It is therefore pertinent that native title lands need to be brought into productive use as much as possible, with government and private sector participation,” he said.

However, Dr Marcus said any effort specially targeted for idle native title lands development should be planned and implemented in a way that both safeguard the rights of the native title land owners while creating opportunities for the private sector to participate in the development of such lands. - Bernama