Pay closer attention to Pan-Borneo works — Tiong

SIBU: The relevant authorities should pay closer attention to works on Pan-Borneo Highway, says Bintulu MP Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing.

He raises such concern in light of the cave-in that struck KM53 of the highway stretch between Kuching and Sri Aman yesterday, where construction of the highway is ongoing.

In a press statement issued yesterday, Tiong said Works Minister Baru Bian should ‘ be awakened’ by this news and realise the danger that the incident posed to travellers.

Tiong also queried whether those involved in the works had adhered to all safety measures and specifications.

“Whenever such incident occurs, the contractor would just patch it up, without studying the core cause.

“This is a multi-billion project, and care must be taken for the safety of travellers.

“Installing warning lights is not something expensive for the contractors (to do),” said Tiong, believing that the cave-in could have been caused by soil erosion.

Moreover, he also noted that the Bintulu- Miri and BintuluSibu stretches of the Pan-Borneo Highway had encountered similar problems.

He said he had voiced this out countless of times, but the problems had yet to be looked into.

“When will the Works Ministry be serious? Shall we wait till lives are sacrificed?

“Fortunately, there were no serious consequences in the cave-in ( yesterday); otherwise, the outcome would have been serious,” stressed Tiong.