The Malaysian Insight

THE ban on export of round logs to create job opportunities for the Sabahans as envisioned by Chief Minister Mohd Shafie Apdal last year is a misguided government policy and would not work, at least at present time, said Yong Teck Lee.

The Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP) president said although the log ban that was enforced in May last year had an immediate impact on the timber industry, building a solid wood-based industry for Sabah will take years.

“The ban alone cannot build the wood industry. The state government needs proper infrastructure, like good port services, low freight charges, sufficient supply and affordable electricity and skilled manpower.

“Also, (the state government needs) good investors who knows good designs and marketing sense. If the European market is involved, there are also matters like certification standards that need to be considered,” said the former chief minister when contacted today.

He said many of these challenges had been discussed during his time in power in the 1990s, where he served as minister of various portfolios in the Sabah government.  

“All the things the present Warisan-led government had been talking about last year had been gone through over and over again by us, along with agencies like Malaysian Investment Development Authority, the Sabah Industrial Development Ministry, Sabah Department of Industrial Development and Research, Forestry Department, Yayasan Sabah and also business leaders and timber associations before,” he said.

Yong, who became Sabah chief minister from 1996 to 1998 when the position was rotated between the Barisan Nasional coalition, noted that the wood-based industries in Sabah are controlled mostly by foreigners, from ownership to workers and that over-flooding the raw material supply from ban will have minimal benefits to Sabahans as far as job creation is concerned.

Yong said that for the time being the government could earn more from royalty in the export of timber and, in terms of job creation, the monies from the royalty can be spent on improving the state services industries, the sector where most Sabahans are presently being employed. – May 20, 2019.