THE Sabah government has proposed a RM1,500 special cash aid to all state public servants in its 2018 budget.

In announcing this, Chief Minister Musa Aman said the payments will be done in two stages, RM1,000 in January next year and the remaining RM500 before the Hari Raya Aidilfitri next year.

“This is for state civil servants and it is in appreciation to their contributions as the main machinery and administration of the public service,” he said when tabling the Sabah 2018 Budget at the state assembly today.

The announcement takes cue to the announcement of the federal government to provide a special one-off payment of RM1,500 during the tabling of the national budget 2018.

Meanwhile, Musa, in noting the potential of the tourism sector, announced a RM228 million allocation for various tourism programmes for next year.

“One of the efforts to strengthen tourism in Sabah is to start on the Rural Tourism Development projects in Kiulu and Kadamaian in Kota Belud.

“The government is trying to tap into a new product known as ‘lung cleansing tourism’, which involves trekking and hiking,” he said.

Musa also announced efforts to gazette historical buildings aged more than 50 years as cultural heritage sites.

“They are the Turnball Hall in Sabah College which was completed in 1959 and named after the second British North Borneo governor Sir Roland Evelyn Turnball, the Kent Teacher’s College built in 1952, which is the oldest teaching institution in Sabah, Wisma Radio Sabah, built in February 1962 and was the former secretariat building of the Cobbold Commission, seven months before the formation of Malaysia on September 16, and finally, Wisma Kewangan, which is the former British Secretariat building built in 1955.

“Wisma Kewangan is also where the first state assembly sitting and Cabinet meeting were held,” said Musa. – November 17, 2017.