Binijin, Lidaun and Bejuet at the press conference
Penampang: Three community leaders here have issued a joint declaration to ensure that the unique name of their village will not disappear or get distorted due to development and modernisation.
Native Chief Andrew S Lidaun, Village Chief Michael F Bejuet and Chairman of Village Security and Development Committee (JKKK) Delek Binijin from Kampung Kobusak Nosoob made the statement from Lidaun's office at the Mini Secretariat Building of Penampang. They insisted that the name be maintained now and forever. Being adjacent to the city of Kota Kinabalu, they are pleased with the progress of development and economy where it has become a model village complete with shopping complex, halls, churches and even a medium size hotel. "However, outside names have been imported as if another town is encroaching into the village. "The worse example is "Lido Square" as if the adjacent suburb had moved into the village, creating confusion on the locality. It should have been named Kobusak Nosoob Square," said Lidaun. Regarding the two-word name of his village, Lidaun remembers clearly the history as passed down by his grandfather Dagul and grandmother Latinggah who came from Moyog to open up the forest as fruit orchards and padi land before the Japanese occupation during World War 2. At that time, the area did not have a name but the padi fields were already producing a bountiful yield. During one of the droughts after harvesting, the area was burnt by a bush fire and the farmers then called the area "Nosoob" meaning scorched. When the rainy season came back, the area not only produced more rice and fruits but a bloom of flowers ("vusak" in KDM) appeared all over, thus the locals agreed to give it another name "Kobusak". The Kobusak Nosoob village used to include the areas now named Kapazan, Koidupan and Bahang administrated by one village chief known as "Orang Tua". Lidaun gave their names in chronological order as follows: OT Sadangkat, OT Ubu Sadangkat and OT Vincent Mobilik Ubu. When Kapazan, Bahang and Koidupan separated to form their own villages, the inhabitants of Kobusak Nosoob requested the government for their own chief, now known as Ketua Kampung, and the first appointed was KK Albert Mojilis. From 1984 to 2009, Lidaun was appointed and from 2009, KK Michael Bejuet took over until now. Lidaun also quoted a former radio broadcaster and deputy director of RTM, Wilfred Mojilis who said that the two names of Kobusak and Nosoob cannot be separated. Hence, with their authority as community leaders of Kobusak Nosoob, the trio announced that from April 7, 2015, no other pollution of the name or slangy spelling such as "Kabasak, Kabisak" will be tolerated and any entity or individual who purposely do so may be sued in the Native Court. They also hoped that the local authorities and government agencies will take note. The trio also said that their decision to fix the name of their village is not just for historical or sentimental reasons but for the benefit of everyone living in the modern world. "Confusing names of locality, buildings, roads and street signs can hamper emergency services such as ambulance, bomba and the police from giving a fast response time. For example, it would be a life and death for any person at Lido Square needing an ambulance and the driver got confused and headed for the Lido market instead. "There have also been reports of fire trucks heading in the wrong direction because of the confusing names of villages," they said. Similarly, the utility agencies such as water and electricity services can provide better services when the people report any breakdown and the repair team can find the location fast due to proper naming of roads, buildings and villages. Hence, the JKKK will be seeking approval from the local council for the erection of entrance arches and other necessary signage for the village, they added
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