Baru points to the appalling state of a section of road from Long Semadoh to Ba Kelalan.
A section of the road from Long Semadoh to Ba Kelalan is full of potholes.
KUCHING: Ba Kelalan assemblyman Baru Bian is saddened by the appalling state of roads in his constituency.
Baru, who is state PKR chairman, said he had been travelling to Ba Kelalan quite frequently in recent months and experienced the rapid deterioration of the roads with each visit.
“The stretch of road from Long Semadoh to Ba Kelalan is in such an appalling state that a trip that previously took 1.5 hours now takes three hours.
“This stretch of road is without doubt the ‘hole-iest’ road in Sarawak. I have even seen a buffalo wallowing in the big muddy pothole on the road. The Long Luping to Long Semadoh road, which is a ‘Jiwa Murni’ project, is also in bad shape.
“Not only are lives put at risk when travelling on these roads; our vehicles take extreme punishment and need constant repair,” he said in a press statement yesterday.
Baru believed the Public Works Department (PWD) was responsible for the maintenance of the road, adding that they should have a regular schedule of repair so that the roads did not decline to such deplorable conditions.
“With the landas season approaching, I expect the condition of these roads to deteriorate further, and I urge the PWD to make urgent repairs now.”
He said the people of rural Sarawak had to put up with sub-standard roads for decades.
“In order to promote local agricultural activities and stimulate the rural economies, proper road infrastructure is crucial. When will we be able to enjoy smooth and uneventful road journeys which are taken for granted by those in Peninsular Malaysia?”
Meanwhile, state PWD corporate communications unit, when contacted, said the road from Long Semadoh to Ba Kelalan was a logging road constructed by a logging company.
“The section from Long Luping to Ba Kelalan is constructed by the Armed Forces under the ‘Jiwa Murni’ programme using soil stabilisation method. This stretch is still the responsibility of the Armed Forces.”
As for the road from Long Luping to Long Semadoh, the state PWD corporate communications unit said it was still under the maintenance of the logging company.