DPM: 82% of projects promised during last GE complete

PUTRAJAYA: Some RM72.3bil worth of projects, representing 82% of what was promised by the Government during the last general election, have been completed, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

Among the completed projects are the 23km Mass Rapid Trasit Sungai Buloh-Kajang line, the extension of the LRT line from Sri Petaling to Putra Heights, full completion of 234,832 units of affordable houses, expanding broadband facilities by providing 230,366 new internet ports and upgrading haemodialysis service at 22 hospitals.

The Federal Government also completed the construction of nine schools and conducted upgrading and repair works on 161 schools in Sabah and Sarawak, tarred 5,797km of roads in rural areas and opened five Urban Transformation Centres and eight Rural Transformation Centres nationwide.

Dr Ahmad Zahid said RM9.54bil was spent for the LRT extension project, RM343.5mil for schools, RM7.7bil for rural roads and RM5mil to upgrade haemodialysis services.

“The Government has always made delivery a priority and we make sure that when the pledges are made, they will be fulfilled,” he said at Parliament after chairing a meeting of a committee formed to oversee the completion of these projects.

With 2017 being the Year of Delivery, he said the Government aimed to continue delivering on its pledges.

These include kicking off construction works for phase one of the 600.3km East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) in July, beginning with the northern portion in Kelantan.

The ECRL will run through Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang and Selangor, with 23 stations. The train will carry both passengers and freight, travelling up to 160km per hour.

Dr Ahmad Zahid said the Government would also keep to its promise to increase the amount of BR1M aid to be distributed and con- tinue with the e-Usahawan and e-Rezeki programmes.

Five Anjung Kasih -a facility which provides free accommodation for family members of patients - will be built in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (Sabah), Sultanah Aminah Hospital (Johor), Serdang Hospital ( Selangor), Penang Hospital and Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital (Kedah).

He said the meeting also looked at initiatives that were part of the Government’s election pledges.

The committee, among others, discussed measures to tackle living costs, development of world-class infrastructure, rural transformation initiatives and educational excellence.