Livelihood in jeopardy: Kampung Orang Asli Sungai Temun folk using the jetty which is in poor condition. (Inset) Kais showing his daily catch from the sea that has been dwindling. — THOMAS YONG/The Star
JOHOR BARU: The Orang Asli communities in two villages in Pulai want an elected representative who cares about their welfare beyond the election season.
Kampung Orang Asli Sungai Temun Tok Batin Salim Palon said the community should not be overlooked as they had worked hard for a living and contributed to society.
“It is always the same story – the candidates come to my village to campaign and ask us to vote for them, but after the election season is over, they are nowhere to be seen.
“It does not matter the political party; we want elected representatives who listen to us and make our voices heard,” he said when interviewed at the village, located near Sungai Danga.
Salim, 63, said they have been trying to get a new jetty for the village for years as the livelihood of the 80-odd families depends on it.
“A jetty in good condition is vital to the Orang Seletar or Orang Laut (Sea People) community.
“Most of the villagers are fishermen who use the jetty daily to look for shellfish such as lokan and mussels, fish and crabs to sell for a living.
“At present, the village jetty is worn and old, making it unsafe for them as well as the children who often go swimming in the water.
“Even if we do not get a concrete jetty, the present wooden one should at least be replaced with new floats and planks.
“I sound like a broken record, as I have raised the issue many times since before the Johor state election in March last year,” he said, adding that the villagers had to fork out their own money to build a multi-purpose hall in the village.
The hall is used for tuition classes conducted by non-governmental organisations for the village children and monthly health checks conducted by health officials.
Salim claimed that harassment from a nearby fishing village, where “certain quarters” attempted to forbid the Orang Asli community from fishing, is another problem the villagers face.
“I think it is out of jealousy and selfishness, but it is unfair to stop us from fishing because the sea is a shared resource. We are trying to make an honest living; it is not as if we are stealing from others.
“We are sea people. If we do not go out to sea, how are we going to raise our families?
“Who is going to give us RM3,000 a month to survive?” he said.
Over at Kampung Bakar Batu in Perling, villagers are struggling to make ends meet due to a dwindling catch from the sea.
According to Tok Batin Kais Tee, their survival was affected because of the vast development taking place in Danga Bay nearby.
“We used to fish right in front of the village in the 60s, but now the mangrove trees have been cleared, so fish and other marine life are not coming to breed.
“Prior to the land reclamation, we enjoyed rich marine life. We could catch crabs, snails, prawns and a wide variety of fish, but they are all gone now,” said the 62-year-old.
Villager Yang Tom, 61, also complained that their jetty was in bad shape.
“The villagers, women included, go out to sea to look for seafood and worms, which we sell to visitors. Many people like to stop by our village to buy worms, which they use as fishing bait.
“Since our catch has dwindled, we have had to look for other sources to supplement our income,” she added.
Yang hopes that the village can be developed into a tourism attraction with beautiful stalls for the villagers to sell delicacies and handicrafts.
“Our village is also frequently visited by students on field trips, so it will be good to have a proper area to welcome them and at the same time help support the villagers,” said the mother of two.
The by-election campaigning period for the Pulai parliamentary seat and Simpang Jeram state seat is ongoing, with polling day set for Sept 9.
The seats were left vacant following the demise of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Minister Datuk Seri Salahuddin Ayub at age 61. He was Pulai MP and Simpang Jeram assemblyman.
There are 166,653 registered voters in Pulai, of which 73,619 (44.18%) are Malays, 67,434 (40.46%) are Chinese, 20,508 (12.31%) are Indians, and 5,092 (3.06%) are from other communities.
