Know which authority to go to in forwarding requests, residents advised
MIRI: There are proper ways and channels for local residents to forward problems like the lack of street-lighting, says a Parti Sarawak Bersatu (PSB) member.
More o en than not, the misconception of these necessary procedures can cause confusion and frustration, UPP Pujut chairman Bruce Chai points out.
He stresses further the importance of ensuring that the complaints would go to the right authority.
“The recent complaint was regarding street-lighting – the complainants came to me, hoping to seek help.
“In fact, it took me some time to explain to them how the streetlight application went. To be honest, the process is a bit fussy, yet it is necessary. When there’s a proposal for streetlighting, many would think the utility company ( Sarawak Energy Bhd) would be the first department ( to send the application to),” Chai told The Borneo Post here recently.
According to him, the most relevant authority would be the local council, namely the Miri City Council (MCC).
“Upon the receipt of the application, they (MCC) will then send a team to ascertain the requirement of the said area, to see whether it (street-lighting) is necessary.
“Upon approval, MCC will send a request to the utility company (Sarawak Energy), the main contractor for installation of street lighting. Sarawak Energy will send a team to assess the area, and a er that, will send quotation to the MCC regarding the cost (which will be borne by MCC).
“The MCC will then get prepare the budget and upon approval, it will send the work order to Sarawak Energy, which will send their team of contractors to undertake the works,” he explained.
He also acknowledged that due to lack of understanding of such painstaking – but highly necessary – procedure, many residents had been unsuccessful their application for street-light at their neighbourhoods.
“It could either be because you have applied to the wrong place, or perhaps, the city council has failed to inform the right person about the non-approval for the request due to incomplete details of the applicants,” said Chai.
“Based from my experience in handling such cases, the utility company would usually act swi ly once they receive such request – there could be something in between (the application and the approval process) that could have caused the delay,” he added.
Chai said for those living in long-established or newlydeveloped residential areas, they must understand the formula used by the city council regarding the installation of street-lighting.
“Tree overgrowth, exemptions due to certain reasons, or blind spots – these are some of the issues that the council must ascertain before moving on to the next step.”
On dim street-lights, Chai commended MCC’s pilot project meant to increase the intensity of street-lighting.
“Not too long ago, MCC did a pilot project in Pujut and the increase intensity had helped resolve the situation there. This should apply to other areas too,” suggested Chai.
On the proposed installation of solar lighting, the UPP man believed that this could result in significant savings in energy, initial installation costs and also in maintenance – pointing out that replacing ba eries could be very costly.