A Stand for the Better

For the fifth time, people in YELLOW marched in major cities in Malaysia on 17 November 2016 to make a public stand on key issues affecting the health of the nation and the future generations of the country. Bersih 5 was a peaceful democratic protest calling for Free and Fair Election, Right to Dissent, Strengthening of Parliamentary Democracy and Empowering Sabah and Sarawak among others.

In KK at the Ujana Rimba Tropika, we saw old familiar faces as well as new faces.

The silence of many to join the march is understandable. Some may hold the view that nothing would come out of this. Some were unable to make a public stand because of a variety of reasons - being a member of the civil service, working in the GLC's or are currently having a government contract...... 

But the most disappointing of all is to find familiar individuals who are very vocal in private chat groups against the misdeeds of the current national leadership. Strong statement such as "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing" has been prominently posted. But sadly when challenged to make a public stand of their disgust in such opportunity like Bersih 5 protest, they were conspicuously silent! They are at best armchair warriors and at worst grand actors!

Sourcing Water

Looking for water sources for water supply schemes sometimes requires us to go deep into forested water catchment areas. Sometimes, trekking to potential water intake sites can be tough and challenging because of the steep terrain and thick vegetation. But once in a while, the task is made pleasant by the awesome views and picturesque scenery that we are able to behold. Our latest excursion took us to Kiulu to look at one small river upstream of Tuaran River. Unfortunately, our attempt to reach the potential site via an alternative route proved unsuccessful. Still, we were rewarded with some spectacular scenery!

Drawing water from river in this part of Sabah may prove difficult because of two factors. River system in Kiulu is famous for two things: the white water rafting and the Tagal System. Tagal System is a practice adopted by local villagers whereby fishing in any part of the designated areas is prohibited except at certain time of the year. Under this system, the river is "divided" into sections and each is managed by a particular village or kampung. Fishing is normally allowed during the dry season which falls in February - April each year (Read here).

We took the opportunity to visit one of my maternal uncle, Wesley Dungko Pai in Kiulu whose house is built just next to Tuaran River in Kiulu. We last visited him in February 2013 (Read here). We were fortunate to "catch" him just before he was scheduled to leave for KK to attend a birthday celebration arranged by his children that evening. He turned 79, the day we met him on 9 November 2016. He was one who was receptive of the idea of the government abstracting water from the river system for public water supply scheme.