KUCHING: Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem is happy that more than RM30 billion has been directly allocated for development in Sarawak and Sabah under Budget 2015.
Perahu tambang operator Bashar Hedi listening to the tabling of Budget 2015 on the radio while docking at Kuching Waterfront yesterday. — Bernama photo
“We are happy because the budget is good for Sarawak. It is a very good budget for now,” he told the press at Wisma Bapa Malaysia after watching a live television broadcast of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak tabling the budget in Parliament yesterday.
Apart from allocations under various federal ministries, Sarawak and Sabah are also given a budget of RM30 billion to address specific needs.
Out of the RM30 billion, as much as RM27 billion has been allocated for upgrading the 1,663km Pan Borneo Highway.
Apart from that, RM2.6 billion has been announced for rural development to improve clean water and electricity supply as well as rural roads. From this figure, RM1.1 billion is for electricity installation to benefit 15,000 households in Sarawak and Sabah; RM394 million for the supply of clean water to 7,500 families; while RM943 million for upgrading 635km of rural roads including logging roads.
Another RM160 million has
been set aside to increase the quality of rural air services across Sarawak and Sabah through maintenance and lease of new aircraft.
For the first time, RM70 million has been allocated as hill paddy subsidy slated to benefit paddy farmers in Sabah and Sarawak – both of which have about 76,000 hectares of hill crop paddy areas.
Another RM262 million has also been allocated to finance transportation costs and enforcement of price control on essential goods, especially in Sabah and Sarawak.
This funding includes the cost for setting up two more Kedai Rakyat 1 Malaysia (KR1M) in Sabah, and three in Sarawak.
RM30 billion makes up 11 per cent of the total budget of RM273.9 billion, tabled by Najib yesterday.
Meanwhile, Works Minister Datuk Fadillah Yusof believed that the RM27-billion allocation for Pan Borneo Highway upgrade, was the largest single allocation Sarawak and Sabah ever received.
“I am thankful to the Finance Ministry, and the Prime Minister in particular, for listening to the people as huge allocation is given to improve land infrastructure for the people,” Fadillah told The Borneo Post yesterday.
He said the government intended to fast-track the upgrading of Pan Borneo Highway through Public-Private Partnership Unit (UKAS) of the Prime Minister’s Office and the Works Ministry, which would act as technical advisor and project manager.
“This year, three projects using conventional method are carried out in Sarawak, and another three in Sabah.
“Next year, all projects will be constructed using new method. UKAS is finalising the terms and conditions – that is the financial model.
“The upgrading of Pan Borneo Highway has started since 2012 and with the application of new method, I believe that the job will be done much earlier than the implementation through conventional method, which could take up to 2025 to complete,” said Fadillah.