TUARAN: Sulaman assemblyman Datuk Hj Hajiji Hj Noor yesterday took the State Development Office (SDO) to task for failing to rebuild the Kampung Mengkabong mosque after dismantling the old one in December last year.
“When they took down the old mosque last December, the expectation of Muslims in Mengkabong would naturally be that the new one would be ready for the fasting month and Hari Raya Puasa this year.
“Now the fasting month is almost here, where are the Mengkabong Muslims going to go for their Tarawih prayers during the fasting month? Where are they going to go for their Hari Raya prayers?” he asked.
Hajiji, who was speaking to reporters after officiating at the Tuaran District Consumer Awareness Seminar at Kampung Gayang, said the new mosque project costs only RM1.2 million and there is no reason why it could not be built within half a year.
“We are not even talking about a RM12 million project, but only RM1.2 million. We are talking about only a village mosque. If that also the SDO cannot implement, I wonder what bigger projects could be done by them,” he said.
Hajiji, who is also the Local Government and Housing Minister, said what irked him most was the SDO’s decision to pull down the old mosque when they could not rebuild it in time for the fasting month.
“I am very, very disappointed. I took the trouble to speak to former Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who approved the project.
“That was a few years ago, and until today the project has not been implemented despite the old mosque having been torn down. How can I not be disappointed?”