BETONG: The forlorn hope for power supply in the Layar area here may soon see the light of day, after a government promise 40 years ago to connect electric cables to the main grid has been rekindled.
Electric poles heading to Pelepok.
Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) Betong branch divisional chief Vernon Aji Kedit brought attention to this in a press statement yesterday, when he urged the government to finish what it started out to do.
“These electric poles and cables (stacked) in front of the Nanga Mujau longhouse in Spak district have not been connected to the main grid since 2011, and along the dirt track to other nearby longhouses like Luing, Temedak and Gerugu, more electric poles lie by the side with creepers growing over them.
“Are these rural community installation an ‘art work’ by Sarawak Energy Bhd (SEB)?” Vernon quipped.
“If the government does not connect the electric cables and bring electricity to these places as promised 40 years ago, these cables will continue to be known as ‘tiang pemula’ (Liar’s Pole) by the residents,” he rebuked.
He made this call in response to an inspection at an on-going mini hydroelectricity project at Pelepok longhouse in Ulu Padeh, Layar, here on Oct 24, a project initiated by him and a non-government organisation (NGO) based in Kuala Lumpur earlier this year.
Pelepok longhouse with 17 doors was selected for the project as it is the remotest longhouse at the headwaters of the Padeh River in Layar, Betong, and only has gravity feed water installed by the residents themselves but has no electricity supply.
“Residents of each door have to spend over RM200 a month on diesel to run their generators at night for a meagre three hours daily, which is a heavy burden when compared to people living in town areas who only pay an average of under RM50 a month for electricity from Sesco, based on the same usage.
“We are talking about the basics like lighting, fans, radio, television, refrigerator, freezer and washing machine. When PKR and the NGO started work on the mini-hydro, coincidentally, or maybe not so coincidentally, (as) three months later, the government also started erecting electric cable poles along the dirt track to the very same longhouse where we are building the hydro,” quipped Vernon, pondering if the government was only galvanised into action by their own initiative.
He took a dig at the authorities, asking if PKR needs to start building mini-hydros in all the no-power longhouses in Layar before the government is prodded to act in providing electricity for them all.