Dr Yii: RM758,482 for 155 projects, welfare aid in Bandar Kuching last year

KUCHING: Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii had allocated a total of RM758,482 for 155 projects and welfare aid in his parliamentary constituency last year.

“All those allocations have been paid out fully to the respective parties. Some of the physical projects have been completed in 2018 with the remainder set for completion soon,” he said in a press statement.

Dr Yii said most of the small physical projects that were yet to be completed, were upgrading and renovation works on schools where construction could only commence at the end of the year during the school holidays Meanwhile, he shared that his office received RM500,000 from the federal government as initial allocation for his constituency and was given another RM500,000 under phase two of the allocation last October.

“These allocations do not take into account the additional allocations we managed to obtain from the federal government through the different ministries for the benefit of the constituency.”

According to him, the allocations were divided into four categories – welfare aid and disaster grant, allocation for small physical projects, allocation to registered associations in the constituency, and administrative expenditure. For welfare aid and disaster relief, he said the grant was used to assist poor constituents with their daily needs and their children’s education, funeral expenses, hospital expenses, families affected by flash floods, and also victims of the explosion that hit CityOne Megamall last month.

As for outright grants to associations, he said his office could allocate a maximum of RM5,000 per year per association that was registered in Bandar Kuching, and the maximum allocation for small projects was capped at RM50,000.

“I personally have visited all the different associations that received the allocations to better understand their activities so that we could better allocate the necessary funding to them.”

Dr Yii added that the visit was also to ensure that the allocation would go directly to the intended target groups. In this regard, he said his office would continue to ensure that these public funds would be used properly and all of it would be accounted for.

As for allocation for 2019, Dr Yii said his office had yet to be informed regarding this matter, but his team had already made plans for projects and programmes in Bandar Kuching to better utilise the allocations entrusted to him.

“We will continue to declare all our yearly expenditures in the spirit of accountability and transparency.”