Abd Karim: Sarawak’s Sukma medallists to get significant incentives

KUCHING (Aug 15): Sarawak’s 21st Malaysian Games (Sukma) medallists are set to receive significant incentives from the state government, said Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.

The Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development Minister said Premier Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg is expected to announce the incentives during tomorrow’s taekwondo event.

“Our Premier will likely announce the incentives that will be given to Sarawakian medallists, and I can confidently say that they will be ‘cukup lumayan sekali’ (quite substantial),” he said in response to queries about whether the incentives might exceed the RM10,000 offered by other states.

“That’s why I mentioned earlier that the incentives will be very substantial – so substantial that they will surpass those offered by any other state. Wait for tomorrow.”

Abdul Karim said this during a press conference after launching the Sukma Sports Village at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) here today.

On the sports village, Abdul Karim said it will serve as a central hub for athletes and official throughout the games.

“Sukma this time is being held across nine divisions, involving 37 sports and 488 events, so there are many sports villages.

“The main sports villages number five, with smaller ones adding up to a total of 33 sports villages, whether in hotels, higher learning institutions, polytechnics, and so on,” he explained.

On athletes’ accommodation and transportation, Abdul Karim said he was satisfied but acknowledged some hiccups.

“From the feedback I’ve received, Alhamdulillah, everything is fine, though there have been some minor hiccups in transportation from accommodation to venues, as I mentioned in my speech earlier.

“It’s common to face such issues on the first day – whether it’s about the food menu or the condition of the toilets at the accommodation.

“But as soon as we get the feedback, we immediately give instructions to those responsible to manage and organise everything as best as possible,” he said.

On the launch, Abdul Karim said it is very symbolic as the state anthems of all participating states, including Brunei Darussalam, were played while their flags were raised.

“We had to stand at attention 14 times as the flags were raised, which was very meaningful because we want to see this village become a place where athletes and officials from all involved can interact and compete in the spirit of unity, with everything running smoothly,” he added.