Water, electricity woes in Sabah, Sarawak to be solved earlier

The clean water and electricity supply woes facing rural residents in Sabah and Sarawak are expected to be solved three years earlier than the initial target by 2023, said Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

He said the commitment to solve up to 99 percent of the problems by 2020, which was highlighted in the Barisan Nasional (BN) manifesto for the 14th General Election (GE14) proved the seriousness and concern of the BN-ruled government in addressing the problems faced by the people.

Ismail Sabri said he believed that with the pledge, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak would provide greater allocation to both states, thus solving the problems of the people especially in the rural areas.

“The pledge is not an election gimmick, but since Najib was appointed as the country’s leader, Sabah and Sarawak received greater allocations in each Budget,” he told reporters after attending the ministry’s monthly assembly here yesterday.

Asked on how the issue could be solved earlier than expected, Ismail Sabri said it was based on the cost calculations made from the previous annual budget.

Meanwhile, in Kuala Lumpur, the Energy Commission in a statement said that the performance of electricity supply in Sabah had increased last year compared to 2016, driven by more than 26 infrastructure-related initiatives and more than 300 projects being developed since early last year.