LUNDU: The government will look into linking villages along the Telok-Melano/Sematan stretch with the main road once this first phase of the Pan Borneo Highway reaches completion in 2019.
According to Natural Resources and Environment Minister Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, some villages in the area are located 1km from the main road and thus, they require the linkage.
“We have discussed with the federal government – what is left after implementing the Telok-Melano/Sematan road will be used to link those villages and longhouses with the main road,” he told reporters here yesterday.
Wan Junaidi said although he had also discussed the matter with the contractor, he had no clue about the available funds left for the proposed connectivity project.
It has been announced that the Telok-Melano/Sematan road project would cost RM580 million.
However, Wan Junaidi said even if there was no leftover fund for project, the state government would negotiate with Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to provide additional funding.
Meanwhile, Wan Junaidi took the opportunity to thank Najib for approving RM129 million for the water supply projects in Tanjong Datu and Tasik Biru.
“The people of Tanjong Datu have been waiting for good water supply. With this approval, the water supply problem in Tanjong Datu will be solved once and for all.”
Wan Junaidi, who is also PBB director of operations for the Tanjong Datu by-election, said Barisan Nasional (BN) had covered almost 80 per cent of the entire state constituency after a week of campaigning.
He said the party had help from not just party leaders as well as its Youth and Women members, but also local leaders of other ethnic groups such as the Ibans and the Chinese.
On a scale of one to 10, he said it would be ‘a seven’ if he were to rate how the election campaign had been so far.
“I would say the campaigning would reach its peak by Feb 15. On Feb 17 evening, there’ll be no more campaigning.”
Asked on why there were so few posters around, Wan Junaidi said it was more important for the PBB and BN people to be moving on the ground rather than focusing on poster-hanging.
“We have visited many places like mosques, community halls and villages. We have also been doing house-to-house visits – so we don’t need a lot of posters.”