Effectiveness of Leadership Vital, Says Najib
Bernama – 18/5/2006
KUCHING - Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said Thursday night the effectiveness of a person's leadership was more important than the period he or she helmed the government.

He said the experience and capability of a leader to provide for development in the state he or she administered was of most importance, and that this applied to Sarawak in its drive to be a progressive state over the next 15 years. Najib said the Sarawak government under the state Barisan Nasional (BN) led by Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud had provided for intensive development in the Land of the Hornbills. "It would be a waste if there is no continuity in the leadership and, if there is any transition, it would have to be smooth," he said when addressing a meet-the-people session at the Stadium Perpaduan, here.

Also present was Taib and five other BN candidates contesting in the state election, polling for which is on Saturday. The other candidates were Housing Minister Datuk Seri Abang Johari Tun Openg (who is contesting the Satok seat), Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister's Office Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman (Tupong), Assistant Minister of Environment Dr Abang Abdul Rauf Abang Zen (Demak Laut), Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi (Pantai Damai) and Syarifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali (Samariang).

Najib said Sarawak had achieved much progress and the main towns reflected a drastic change. He said these were the result of the efforts of the BN government which always came up with development plans, such as the Ninth Malaysia Plan that would be implemented over the next five years.

"We already have a picture of Sarawak's future. We cannot imagine a Sarawak without the BN administration. The desire to bring more progress to the state will not materialise otherwise," he said. Najib said the people of Sarawak should not reject the development that was coming their way with the allocation of RM25 billion to develop the state.

The federal government accorded priority to Sarawak because it had great potential in agriculture and natural resources, he added. On the candidates from Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) standing against BN candidates in the election, Najib said the party was merely surviving.

"It is already dying in the peninsula, and now it wants to move over to a new place. But I am convinced that the PKR has no place in the hearts of the people of Sarawak," said Najib, who is BN deputy chairman. Najib said opposition parties would only make their presence felt in an election while the BN was with the people through thick and thin.
Source: www.bernama.com