Mukah Division Explained

Mukah Division
Seat Type:Division Office location
Seat:Mukah
Parts Type:Local area government(s)
Parts:Majlis Daerah Dalat & Mukah (MDDM)
Majlis Daerah Matu-Daro (MDMD)
Area Total Km2:6,997.61
Population Total:107,161
Population As Of:2020[1]
Population Density Km2:auto
Blank Name:Resident
Blank Info:Kueh Lei Poh
Blank1 Name:Districts
Blank1 Info:Mukah, Dalat, Daro, Matu & Tanjung Manis
Blank2 Name:Sub-districts
Blank2 Info:Balingian, Oya & Igan

Mukah Division is one of the twelve administrative divisions in Sarawak, Malaysia. It was established on 1 March 2002 and it has a total area of 6,997.61 square kilometres.[2]

Mukah Division contains five administrative districts: Mukah, Dalat, Daro, Matu and Tanjung Manis District. The total population is 110,543.[1] The population is culturally mixed, with mostly Melanau, Malay, Iban, and Chinese predominating.

Resident Roll of Honor

!No.!Residents!From!Until
1.Datu Haji Sarudu bin Haji Hoklai1 March 20025 March 2006
2.Tuan Haji Abdullah bin Jamil6 March 200624 May 2009
3.Tuan Haji Dr. Junaidi @ Saudi bin Narani 25 May 200923 May 2013
4.Tuan Haji Mohd Supaih bin Haji Hamdan2 July 20133 July 2016
5.Awang Johari bin Awang Mustapha4 October 201631 July 2018
6.Hajah Hamdiah binti Haji Bakir[3] August 2018October 2020

Development

As a relatively new division in Sarawak, Mukah identifies seven core development sectors. Major rivers in Mukah are Batang Mukah, Batang Oya, Batang Igan and Batang Rajang. The sectors are as follows;

Infrastructure

After a few years, the division has completed a coastal road that connects Kuala Balingian/Balingian/Mukah/Dalat/Oya/Igan/Matu/Daro.A RM 48 million, 170 meters double-arch suspension bridge over Batang Mukah was opened to public on 16 September 2005.[4]

During the 2014 Balingian by-election, Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has announced that a new airport will be built for Mukah. The overall cost of the project is estimated at RM 600 million. The earthworks began on 16 April 2014 at a site about 7 kilometers from the town centre.[5] As of February 2015, 16% of the construction was completed.[6]

Education

There are two higher education institutes in the division; UiTM Mukah campus and Mukah Polytechnic. Also, there is a coal power plant built in Matadeng, some 30 km from the Mukah town. In March 2015, Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud has launched the Laila Taib College (KLT) Mukah Campus.[7] The 35-acre campus is within the Mukah Education Hub and costs RM 336 million. The campus is still under construction.

Fishery

Meanwhile, in Belawai, the fishery sector is being focused. There is Tanjung Manis Deep Sea Fishery Complex to support the sector. Tanjung Manis also connected to Sibu via Serdeng/Tanjung Manis/Bruit/Sg.Nai Road and Sibu/Bawang Assan/Serdeng Road.

The fishery industry is synonym with Mukah town too. The Melanaus are fish lovers and fish are incorporated in traditional dishes, for example umai. Mukah town even has statues of Ikan Merah(Red Snapper) and Udang(Prawn) that suggests the importance of the industry to the town and the division wholly.

Shopping malls

Tourism

Mukah offers a different tourism attraction in Sarawak. Being the only Melanau-majority town, the Melanau culture is the best that Mukah has to offer.

Kaul Festival (Pesta Kaul)

There is a grand Kaul Festival (Pesta Kaul in Malay) held annually at Kala Dana Beach (Pantai Kala Dana in Malay) at Mukah. In 2012, approximately 70,000 visitors attended the festival.[8] A park called Kala Dana Recreation Park or Site of Kaul Festival (Tapak Pesta Kaul) was built there and had recently been renovated and is now more modern. It also has an observation tower. This festival attracts many visitors from Sarawak-wide and sometimes even foreign tourists. The chief minister also attends this festival each year. For 2014, the festival was held on 23–27 April.[9]

Places of interest

Some of the places of interest in Mukah Division are:

Agriculture

The main agricultural products are oil palm, sago, paddy, pineapple and aquaculture.

Industry

In 1996, the Mukah Light Industrial Estate was established by the Mukah river, about 3 km from the Mukah town. The planned area covers 61 hectares. The other industrial estate in Mukah Division is the Tanjung Manis Timber Processing Zone developed by Sarawak Timber Industry Development Corporation (STIDC).[4]

Demography

Ethnic groups

As of 2010, Melanau is the largest ethnic group in Mukah Division with more than half of the population identified themselves as Melanau. Iban is the second largest with 18.6% of the population.

Administration

Members of Parliament

ParliamentMember of ParliamentParty
YB Tuan Haji Yusuf Abd WahabGPS (PBB)
YB Tuan Haji Ahmad Johnie ZawawiGPS (PBB)
P213 MukahYB Dato Hajjah Hanifah Hajar TaibGPS (PBB)

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: KEY FINDINGS POPULATION AND HOUSING CENSUS OF MALAYSIA 2020 . selangor.gov.my . 5 April 2023.
  2. Web site: Rakan Sarawak July 2007 . State Secretary's Office, Chief Minister's Department, Sarawak . 7 . 6 February 2011.
  3. Web site: Portal Web Rasmi Pentadbiran Bahagian Mukah. 2021-01-09. mukah.sarawak.gov.my.
  4. Web site: Sarawak Property Buletin . 3 . 5 March 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20081205035941/http://www.wtwy.com/report/SPB/SWakBulletin06.pdf . 5 December 2008 . dead .
  5. News: First phase earthworks for new Mukah Airport starts today . 16 April 2014.
  6. Web site: Fulfilling the wish list of Balingian’s constituents.
  7. Web site: TYT pledges full support for Adenan . 31 March 2015.
  8. Web site: Mukah Kaul expects to draw over 70,000 visitors this year . The Star Online . 7 March 2013.
  9. Web site: MUKAH KAUL FESTIVAL . Sarawak Tourism . 7 March 2013 . https://archive.today/20130411182840/http://www.sarawaktourism.com/en/event-detail?evid=72 . 11 April 2013 . dead .