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MIRI – Three hornbills choosing to perch on the Senadin Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) service centre building here yesterday has been called a good omen by Datuk Seri Lee Kim Shin.
The state transport minister and Senadin assemblyman said the birds, believed to be Oriental pied hornbills, may have been drawn to the building by the large Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) logos featuring the state bird.
“In our local culture, if a hornbill is seen flying over or visiting their longhouses, or homes, or place of work, it is believed that good luck and good fortune await them.
“The local natives also incorporate hornbill elements into their arts,” he said.
“The big GPS hornbill logos could have attracted them and these jungle-dwelling hornbills can live in the city area at Miri’s urban nature reserve and fly around the city freely due to Miri’s green environment with clean air.”
The three hornbills stayed for around an hour on the building before flying off, presumably back to the Piasau Nature Reserve at Pulau Melayu.
Lee uploaded on Facebook a photo of the hornbills taken by the proprietor of a coffeeshop in the area around 2pm yesterday.
He said that just like the hornbill deserves all the protection that it needs to avoid extinction, GPS would also ensure that Sarawak’s rights are protected.
“It seems that the hornbills also know that under the GPS government, they are well protected like a father protecting them,” he said.
Incidentally, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim had announced several matters involving the Malaysia Agreement 1963 yesterday, including the review of the special grant for Sarawak and Sabah under Article 112D of the federal constitution, which would be reviewed every five years so that a more “reasonable” sum could be allocated.
He also announced the federal government’s decision to allow Sabah and Sarawak to decide on the implementation of infrastructure projects costing under RM50 million in their states. – Borneo Post Online, January 5, 2023