Ba Kelalan folk send SOS to repair road
KUCHING: The people of Ba Kela lan, especial ly the transporters, are sending an SOS to the government to expedite the repair of their road.
A transporter from Long Semadoh Lion King @ Singa yesterday appealed to the relevant authorities to expedite the upgrading of the road especially the stretch from Long Luping to Ba Kelalan, a distance of 60km.
“We are crying for help, so please help us. Our road now is in the worst condition. It’s a very dreadful experience every time we have to pass through the bad stretch.
“The longer the authorities make us wait for better road, the more we suffer because we have no other choice. We have to transport food items to the people of Ba Kelalan and Long Semadoh every day,” lamented Singa.
The people of Ba Kelalan and Long Semadoh were very excited last week when Samling announced that they would start works onthe road once the weather permits.
“But until today, there is still no sign of them doing anything,” said Singa.
He said there are 25-30 transporters plying the road every day to ferry the locals as well as carry goods.
“And needless to say on how much we have to spend on our vehicle maintenance. Just last Saturday, I spent more than RM1,300 and today I have to spend another RM430 on my vehicle. So once again, on behalf of the transporters and the people of Ba Kelalan and Long Semadoh, please come and help us.”
When contacted, Limbang divisional engineer, who preferred anonymity, said the matter was beyond his control as it lies with the government.
Meanwhile, Minister of Infrastructure Development and Transportation Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Masing said he would meet up with the prime minister on Oct 24 to find an amicable solution to the problem.
“The reason for the delay is because the road was built by the army under the Jiwa Murni concept. So we have to get the government to change the status of the road so that JKR can take over.”
Masing said, once the status had been changed, the contractor (Samling) could proceed with the upgrading of the road with a RM36 million allocation.
“We have to do something. The law is created by man. So we believe man must change the law. This is the issue we need to address urgently,” said Masing, who is also a deputy chief minister.