Sarawak’s rural areas still in want of basic infrastructure

SARAWAK still needs infrastructure projects and basic facilities especially in rural areas, while road connectivity is still poor in Bau, says Dato Henry Harry Jinep ( PDP- Tasik Biru).

He said this when debating the Head of State’s address yesterday.

As such, he thanked the chief minister for the announcement of RM20 million- fund to build a water treatment plant in Bau during the 2018 Redeems Gawai Carnival 2018 here, last month.

“It is our hope that the plant implementation would start soonest possible for the convenience and benefit of the people.”

He added that Sarawak was also able to provide an all-inclusive road network, electricity and treated water supplies and telecommunication connectivity for its people, thus enabling Sarawak to record positive economic growth from 2.3 per cent in 2016 to 4.7 per cent in 2017.

He was also thankful that the native customary right ( NCR) land ( Pimuung Bisingai) had been turned from Provisional Lease and to be gazetted as Communal Reserve Land under Section 6 of the Sarawak Land Code, which covers an area of 1,296 hectares.

For rural electrification scheme ( RES), Henry said he was happy that Sarawak had reached the 95 per cent electrification coverage due to the efforts of Sarawak Energy Berhad.

“However, in Tasik Biru, there are still 1,876 applications pending or are unable to be processed. From the number 1,194 have not been carried out, 43 with valid status and 582 with no status.

“I thus request the relevant ministry to either expedite the process or give reasonable explanation for the delay as many of the applications were submitted last year.

“We already have Batang Ai and Bakun HEP dams, and Murum is coming up. All of these are state- owned which should be able to generate stable revenue for Sarawak. Thus, Sarawak should be able to complete all its RES projects without depending on federal funding.

“The people are restless by the day. They are disappointed because of the lack of even the basic necessities.”

On the issue of telecommunication connectivity in rural areas, he said time was of the essence in the delivery to meet the people’s aspirations so that they won’t end up as mere promises on paper.

“We must also find ways to cut down on bureaucracy. The relevant authorities must know how and when to delegate their authority. If I may also suggest, we should re- examine the standard operating procedures ( SOP) that contribute to the delay in the implementation of projects,” he added.