ORANG ASLI RUBBER TAPPERS SEEK GOVT SUPPORT DURING HEATWAVE

GUA MUSANG, The Orang Asli in the Kuala Betis Resettlement Scheme (RPS) here are appealing to the federal government for additional incentives following the prolonged hot weather affecting the state. Kuala Betis RPS Village Development and Safety Committee chairman Sudin Rigen said that most heads of families in the settlement are rubber tappers, who have been forced to temporarily stop working as the rubber trees cannot produce latex in the same quantity as the previous years. 'I appeal to the authorities to understand the hardship of the Orang Asli community because we cannot sell rubber as usual. The excessively hot weather causes the rubber trees to dry up and leaves to fall,' he told Bernama recently. He added that in the village, scrap rubber is sold for only RM2.80 per kilogramme. Sudin expressed hope that the government would provide cash assistance to the people during this dry season to support their livelihoods. A resident, Ali Pedik, 59, said the reduced scrap rubber sales during this hot we ather also impacted his family's economy. 'For now, I have to take a break from tapping and seek forest produce for alternative income,' he said. Similarly, Remy Along, 39, said he had to switch jobs to become a palm oil plantation worker in the area. 'For the past two months, I have been harvesting oil palm fruit here. I had to change jobs temporarily due to the lack of rubber yield caused by the hot weather,' he said. Source: BERNAMA News Agency