Batang Lupar and Rambungan back on track
Abang Johari seen making his speech during the Fiesta Samariang launching ceremony held at Kampung Lintang, today. – Photo by Muhammad Rais Sanusi
KUCHING: Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg has revealed that the construction of the Batang Rambungan and Batang Lupar bridge projects, which have been deferred by the federal government is now in the process of tendering by the state Public Works Department (JKR).
Recently, the Sarawak government has agreed to allocate funds to continue with the construction of the two bridges.
Speaking during the Fiesta Samariang launching ceremony held near the Kampung Lintang jetty here today, he also confirmed that tendering of process of the two bridges will be offered to contractors on an open tender basis as it is the new policy of the state government.
According to him, the state under the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) will not stop any development for the people even if the state has to use its own budget to do so and if there is no help from the federal government to build the Batang Lupar and Rambungan bridges, then the state government take over the two projects.
“Under the previous federal government, a lot of infrastructures were planned for the people of Sarawak including the two bridges. Now that it looks like the new federal government is not helping us build the two bridges, we can still build the two bridges,” he added.
He attributed the ability of the state government to undertake the two projects to the state’s new found income from the five per cent sales tax on petroleum products.
Meanwhile during the event, he also commented that the state will not stop in fighting for its rights under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) which have been eroded over the years.
As GPS is an entity of its own, Abang Johari guided that they would be able to do this, which is why he assures Sarawakians that with GPS, Sarawak is capable of taking care of itself.
“When we (the parties currently under GPS) were the Barisan Nasional coalition, every decision had to be made by consensus and because of that we from Sarawak at the time had no choice.
“Which was why we were not able to fight for the right. But now that Sarawak parties have an entity of its own, we are now able to do so,” he said.
Also present during the ceremony was Assistant Minister of Law, State-Federal Relations and Project Monitoring and Samariang assemblywoman Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali, Petra Jaya MP Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, Kuching City North Mayor Datuk Abang Abdul Wahap Julai and other officials.
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