Step up efforts to mitigate Kuching flash floods, urges DAP S’wak chief
KUCHING: The local authorities and state government are urged to step up their efforts to mitigate flash flood issues in the city.
In making this call yesterday, Democratic Action Party (DAP) Sarawak chairman Chong Chieng Jen said the spate of heavy rains ongoing since Thursday night had exposed the inadequacy of the drainage in the city.
“Even though the rainfall in the wee hours of the morning was not extraordinarily long and heavy, many commuters were strained on the Kuching roads due to flash floods over various places.
“The water level in many houses also reached the car porches. Some unfortunate residents even found that the water level was rising into their homes,” he said in a statement.
Chong, who is Stampin MP and Padungan assemblyman, listed out a few badly-affected areas: Mile 8 and 9 of Penrissen Road, Mile 7, Haji Baki area, Semaba, Kampong Bumbok, Matang, Green Road, Jalan Mendu, Jalan Sekama, Hua Joo Park, Jalan Tun Haji Openg (Sarawak General Hospital), Jalan Jamboree Stakan, Kampong Sinar Budi, Desa Wira and Rantau Panjang.
He warned that it would have been a disaster if the heavy rainfall had continued for another two to three hours.
“The three local authorities: Kuching North City Commission (DBKU), Kuching South City Council (MBKS) and Padawan Municipal Council (MPP), as well as the state government should step up their efforts to resolve or at least mitigate these regular flash floods problem,” he stressed.
“The easiest and least costly way to mitigate the flash flood problem is to regularly clear clogged drains, yet this has not been carried out,” added Chong.
According to him, other measures like constructing more water discharge outlets or enlarging the present water discharge outlets might be more costly, but not impossible and surely, not too difficult given the resources of the state government, both in manpower and financial capability.
He also highlighted the irony of the matter; despite the state government’s constant boasts of having more than RM10 billion in annual revenue, the people in Kuching are constantly subjected to flash floods during periods of heavy rainfall.
“What is the rationale of having tens of billions sitting in a bank while the people in the capital of Sarawak continue to suffer due to the lack of and inadequacy in proper drainages?
“The Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) government should get its priorities right by putting in more efforts and funding towards improving the city’s drainage,” Chong added.