Durin-born man aspires to be SUPP candidate for Lanang
SIBU: A Durin- born man who has made it good in Miri and Brunei is returning to his hometown to help the local farming community achieve greater progress.
Speaking at the town’s Chinese New Year gathering hosted by Durin Youth Movement on the first day of the celebration on Saturday, Kelvin Kong said he had been picked by SUPP as one of the potential candidates for the coming 14th general election.
The others are Joseph Chieng and Wong Ching Yong. The three are party members of either Dudong or Bukit Assek branches.
Kong, who is a successful entrepreneur in Miri and Brunei, is also the chairman of Miri Vui Neng dialectal clan association.
He said: “I hope to bring further progress to Durin through the political platform in the government. There are lots of things we could do together in the Barisan Nasional ( BN). I shall commit myself to you.”
He added it is only through BN l that the people could see their wishes materialised.
“I now call on you to work with me. Be the support behind me. Let us form a team, and let’s work hard to bring Lanang constituency under the flagship of Barisan Nasional towards progress.”
He said the government had built the Durin Bridge to link the people and bring development to both sides of the river.
“I grew up here. Every piece of my childhood memories is precious.”
He said when he was a kid, there were only earth roads in the villages; they had no power and water supply; progress was backward and life was harsh.
Therefore, he said it was always his wish to see Durin under Lanang constituency rise in the BN government.
He said the completion of Durin Bridge was their stepping stone towards realising their dreams of progress.
“Now, the people living on the river banks are linked. There is basic infrastructure like power and water supply. But being a town of more than 100 years old, these are insufficient.”
He said Durin still did not have its own civic centre for communal gatherings; it did not have a farmers’ market and the tourism potential was never unearthed.
“Because of the lack of facilities, we have only been hosting the Chinese New Year gathering and the Durin Festival. When I was a kid, I had been attending this Chinese New Year gathering.”
He said a lot more needed to be done, like the upgrading of the infrastructure and others.
“I grew up here. I understand the hardship and problems of the people. We must work together to see to the greater progress of Durin and Lanang constituency. There is this BN channel in the government.”
Meanwhile, in his speech, Dudong assemblyman Datuk Tiong Thai King said he would seek for a fund of RM250,000 to upgrade the basketball court in Durin town.
“I have asked Sibu Rural District Council to look into this. The works are expected to take off this year. The people cannot wait any longer.”
Tiong, who is also Sibu Municipal Council chairman, saw this as an urgent need because this is where community activities are held.
He hoped the people would continue to give feedback on their needs like how they requested for the upgrading of Durin basketball court.
He said only when they have a people’s representative in the government can the townsfolk and the villagers see progress, adding through him, the people had received grants of over RM3 million for the improvement of roads and schools in Durin.
He said both the peoples’ representatives and Sibu Rural District Council played a crucial role in Durin’s progress.
Organising chairman Councillor Teo Ming Lung and supervisor of the organising committee Councillor Teo Boon Siew were among those present.