Bornean states have long suffered in silence over high costs to join national events in peninsula, says Abd Karim   

KUCHING (July 11): Sabah and Sarawak have always had to endure high costs when travelling to Peninsular Malaysia for national-level events, said Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.

The Youth, Sports and Entrepreneur Development Minister said as such Kedah Menteri Besar (MB) Datuk Seri Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor’s request for Sarawak to help share the travel costs of Kedah’s Malaysia Games (Sukma) contingent has helped to highlight how expensive it has been for Sabah and Sarawak to join in national events.

“What the Kedah MB has highlighted is how the Bornean states of Sabah and Sarawak have to endure, in any national events, including sports, whenever they are being held in Malaya.

“The cost that contingents from Sabah and Sarawak for any sports event, be it Sukma or yearly national soccer league, among others. We’ve suffered in silence every year just to participate,” he told The Borneo Post when contacted.

He was commenting on Muhammad Sanusi’s request for Sarawak to pay part of the cost of travel and transportation of equipment for the Kedah contingent to Sarawak for Sukma next month.

“Kedah MB was just being humble and commenting in a jest when asking Sarawak to cover part of the cost of sending Kedah’s contingent to the forthcoming Sukma,” he said.

“Kedah is a rich state with a vibrant industrial park in Kulim, and the Kedah MB even at one time did mention that it could be as developed and successful as Selangor.”

Abdul Karim said as such sending a contingent to Sarawak for Sukma should not be a problem at all for Kedah.

He pointed out that when Sukma was rotated among the states in the peninsula, it was so easy for Kedah’s contingent to participate because they simply travelled by bus.

He said this was in contrast to contingents from Sabah and Sarawak, which had to endure the extra expenses of using flights for all athletes, officials, and equipment practically every year but never complaining.

“But for Kedah MB, just because of a slight pain in the pocket, is already appealing to Sarawak to absorb the costs,” said Abdul Karim.

Sukma XXI will be held on Aug 17-24 in Kuching, Samarahan, Serian, Sri Aman, Betong, Sibu, Mukah, Bintulu, and Miri.

Introduced in 1986, Sukma was previously held in Sarawak in 1990 and 2016.

Sarawak was Sukma champion in 1990, 1992, and 1994.