TANJUNG SELOR – The Vice chairman of The House of Regional Representatives of Republic of Indonesia (DPD RI) Mahyudin reminded the government to learn from the case of Sipadan-Ligitan which ended up being claimed by Malaysia on Monday (28/3) night.
In reality, there are rising issues in the outermost areas of North Kalimantan which are directly adjacent to Malaysia.
There is even a jargon saying ‘Ringgit in my purse, Malaysia in my stomach, but Garuda is still on my chest’, which shows how the loyalty of our people is being tested with the convenience offered by the neighbouring country, Malaysia.
We should not ignore the suffering of the people living on the border who rely more on neighbouring products for its low price.
Also, many of them have no electricity and have limited access in transportation and communication.
Accompanied by Deputy Minister of Agrarian and Spatial Planning/BPN Surya Candra and DPD RI senators from Kaltara–Marthin Billa, Fernando Sinaga, and Hasan Basri–Mahyudin also said that, currently, there is a very large gap between residents in Krayan District, Nunukan Regency, with their neighbors in Sabah and Sarawak, Malaysia.
The gap is not only in the form of welfare, but also in the psychological form of treatment and attention from the state.
The people of Krayan do not even have adequate land roads when they are only 250 km away from Malinau.
It is also difficult to get certified land because almost the entire area has the status of protected forest.
Meanwhile their neighbors, on the same and adjacent land in Malaysia, have economic areas, oil palm plantations, and even CPO factories.
“It’s not that I’m suggesting that all protected forests be converted, but we have to admit that our fellow Indonesians staying there need a place to live and do business. I hope this matter will be a priority for the Ministry of ATR,” said Mahyudin while explaining to the Deputy Minister of ATR/BPN Surya Candra.
Based on the available data, it is known that the Krayan Sub-district in Nunukan Regency, which is directly adjacent to Malaysia, is in a worrisome condition.
They are isolated even from other sub-districts and regencies in North Kalimantan due to limited infrastructure and communication lines as well as the electricity network.
According to data from the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, as many as 306 villages in North Kalimantan Province have not yet enjoyed electricity, mostly located in Krayan District.
The electrification ratio of the youngest province in Indonesia has only reached 68.94% where Nunukan Regency is the area with the lowest ratio of electrified villages (25.83%) and the electrification ratio has only reached 58.34%.
