MP Putatan likens efforts to secure funds for churches to act of love

PUTATAN – Datuk Marcus Mojigoh, the Member of Parliament for this area, likened his efforts to secure Federal Government grants for churches here, amounting to RM900,000, to an act of love for the local community.

Speaking at a dinner function that he hosted at a hotel here on 13 Feb 2017, the Putatan MP told his guests that he personally met and appealed to the Prime Minister, Datuk Sri Najib Razak, before the allocations were approved.

Mojigoh said that he had originally requested for RM1.5 million for this purpose, but the figure was trimmed down. He explained that with the available amount, he made a study of the needs of all the churches in the Putatan constituency.

“Whether the amount is big or small, take and accept it, reflecting that we are in a loving community of this country,” he said.

Mojigoh, a Catholic, stressed that as Christians, “we should put into practice the showing of love in our society.”

The function was attended by 270 church leaders and members, including Archbishop John Wong of Kota Kinabalu, accompanied by Fr Frederick Raymond, parish priest of the Holy Nativity Church, Terawi.

The recipients were St Catherine Laboure Putatan (RM420,000); St Simon Duvanson (RM200,000); Stella Maris Tg Aru (RM100,000), St Peter Tombovo (RM100,000), Our Lady of Fatima Talang Taun (RM50,000), Bethel Church of Sabah (RM10,000), Calvary Charismatic Centre Tg Aru (RM10,000) and the Basel Church of Malaysia (RM10,000).

Although representatives of these churches received a mock cheque at the presentation ceremony, Alex Among, an assistant of the Putatan MP, had announced that the amounts had already been credited into the accounts of the churches concerned. – Joe Leong