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Gong-maker hopes for funding from Govt
Published on: Sunday, April 21, 2024
By: Marutin Ansiung
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Lumbang demonstrating his gong-making skills.
Before venturing into the field, Lumbang only repaired damaged or broken old gongs and tajau.
According to him, he has been involved in repairing damaged gongs and tajau for more than 30 years and this is source of income for the family, which also covers the children’s schooling expenses.
“I started tinkering with the career of repairing gongs and tajau when I once saw old gongs and tajau that were valuable gifts in Murut community weddings. Many of them were broken and damaged.
“It gave me the idea to try and repair gongs and tajau,” said Lumbang at his gong-making workshop in Kampung Ria Keningau, recently.
Lumbang showing a finished ‘gong’.
Having done this for several years, he said the response is very encouraging.
“The issue of the market is not a problem because apart from individual buyers there are also wholesalers who are regular customers. Limited equipment’s is a constraint and causes the production unable to meet its demand,” he explained.
The gongs are sold at RM500 and RM800 each, depending on the sizes.
In the long run, he hoped to get assistance from any government agency to secure a loan or financial grants in order to expand his business.
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