Willie Mongin
KUCHING: Tender for the long-delayed health clinic project in Siburan is expected to be called next month.
Puncak Borneo MP Willie Mongin said he had received the official reply from the Ministry of Health (MOH) pertaining to the approval of the project implementation.
“I have been officially informed today that the Type 3 Health Clinic project in Siburan will proceed.
“It is now in the midst of site preparation and will be implemented using the Pre Approved Plan (PAP),” he said.
Willie said he was told that the tender for the proposed project is expected to be called in September and construction is expected to start by end of this year.
He said Minister of Works Baru Bian had also been informed of the latest development to ensure there is no more delay the implementation of the project.
“With this, I would like to thank the Pakatan Harapan (PH) Government, Minister of Health Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, his deputy and also special thanks to the previous leaders who mooted the ideas to built Siburan Clinic.
“Even though the previous leaders can’t make it happened but it is our duty as government of the day to get it done for the benefit of the rakyat,” he said.
A Type 3 Health Clinic is defined as a clinic with around 300 to 500 patient attendances per day. Managed by medical officers, the clinic provides general out-patient, maternal and child, dental and rehabilitation care. It would also have laboratory and radiological services.
Prior the latest development, Willie had two weeks ago taken the initiative to follow-up and discussed with the MOH, giving justification on the need and urgency of the Siburan Clinic project to proceed without further delay.
He said he had also had verbal discussion with Deputy Minister of Health Dr Lee Boon Chye in Parliament with regards to the matter.
For the record, the proposal to build a new and bigger Clinic in Siburan was first announced by former Health Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai when he made a working visit to the Siburan rural clinic on 13th April 2011. The former Health Minister also promised and reaffirmed that a new, bigger and modern clinic for Siburan at a cost of RM22 million will be built and promised to be ready by 2016.
In 25th April 2016, again another former Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramanian pledged the same promises that a health clinic would be built in Siburan.
However, both of these pledged and promised by former government had never materialised.