KUCHING: Sri Aman town, some 200km from Kuching, will continue to prosper as the little town has seen many changes over the years that came with the developments under the Barisan Nasional (BN) government.
Assemblyman for Simanggang Datuk Francis Harden Hollis, who is serving his fourth term, is confident that the town will slowly flourish with better facilities to improve the standard of living of the people there as well as to lure more people and tourists to come and stay longer.
Francis’ main focus now is to ensure that the new hospital, costing RM200 million, would be built and completed by 2013 to provide better health care services to the people.
“The hospital which was announced by the Prime Minister Dato Seri Najib Tun Razak will have advanced medical equipment for specialists and doctors to help patients,” he told The Borneo Post yesterday.
He pointed out that the Ministry of Health Malaysia will look into the implementation seriously as the administrative town, with a population of slightly more than 10,000, has been deprived of such amenity for a lengthy period.
That aside, another area which should be looked into, Francis said, is the Empango Water Treatment Plant which capacity and water pressure should be increased so that each household in the area will have sufficient water supply instead of having to deal with unnecessary interruption.
“The water capacity is insufficient for the population which has increased over time,” he explained.
Francis also hoped the first phase of Sri Aman new township, within the vicinity of the old town, would be completed soon to provide tourists and visitors with better accommodation and shopping facilities during their stay.
“The new township will bring this little town alive and potential visitors can look forward to their visits. In addition, Sri Aman will finally have a three-star hotel and hopefully, this will lure more people to come and stay longer, especially during the Tidal Bore Festival which is held once a year.”
He also pointed out that the landscape of the famous Temudok Camp which was once the camp for the General Armed Forces has changed.
“It has been transformed into a new complex and residential for the Royal Malaysian Police and their family,” he said.
In this regard, Francis hopes that the Ministry of Tourism will also consider revamping the famous Fort Alice which could highlight the new waterfront as the centre of tourist attraction.