His love for nature led to fight against illegal loggers
KUCHING: It was a deep love for nature that resulted in Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem waging war against illegal loggers.
Saying this was Adenan’s press secretary Ambrose Cheng, who is one of many Sarawakians who missAdenan the most.
Loyal and often tight-lipped, Cheng finally broke his silence yesterday.
There seemed to be an outburst of feelings when he shared on social media his sorrow on the passing of his superior whom he had worked for the last three years.
“This morning I took time off to go back to our office at the 22nd floor of Wisma Bapa Malaysia in Petra Jaya. Your (Adenan’s) desk, your table, your garden and your guest reception areas, Sir, are all empty.
“You are no more there, Sir, but you will always dwell in the heart of Sarawakians as a leader who had the courage and conviction. Adios and goodbye, Sir,” said Cheng on a social media posting yesterday.
Cheng, who was working for the Information Department before being seconded to the Chief Minister’s Office as press secretary, said Adenan’s policy against illegal logging was a genuine measure shaped by his love for nature.
“As a nature lover myself, I am touched by his love for nature — the pristine forest, diverse ecology, and his conviction of preserving and protecting our forests.”
“I do not think his stance against illegal logging is a mere political gimmick. It is the love for the natural environment deep down in his soul that has shaped his policy towards our natural forests.”
Narrating a personal experience, Cheng backed up the fact that Adenan’s fight for devolution of power and the sincere attempt to take back Sarawak’s rights as enshrined in the Malaysia Agreement 1963.
“I have this personal conviction that his (Adenan’s) stance on the rights and powers of Sarawak is not something he conceived as an afterthought.
“A few days after he took over as chief minister, among my first few assignments was to check a piece of foreword for a book published by the state government because he disagreed with a sentence that says ‘…Sarawak as a state…’.”
“No,” Adenan had said. “This is wrong. Sarawak is not a state in Malaysia. Go change that.”