The one-lane Belian Bridge spans 50m and should provide a shortcut for those commuting between the BRS in Penrissen and Bau town. However, the structure is yet to be ready.
Dr Jerip (centre) being briefed by a supervisor on the Dahan Bridge project.
KUCHING: It looks like the Dahan Bridge — a vital link between Penrissen and Bau — is not going to be ready anytime soon.
The 50m structure should have reached completion last Friday.
In his visit to the site a day before the scheduled completion date, Assistant Minister of Public Health Datuk Dr Jerip Susil was awestruck when he was told that the project had stalled due to the shortage of ‘Belian’ (ironwood) logs.
“I urge JKR (Public Works Department) to monitor the progress of the project as it is now delayed due to the lack of a certain building material. In this modern era, it is not appropriate to use ‘Belian’, which is getting very scarce.
“It could be replaced by concrete slabs, which are easily available and cheap. Using ‘Belian’ is no longer viable,” Dr Jerip told The Borneo Post after instructing the contractor to complete the project as soon as possible as it was a vital link between Penrissen and Bau.
Dr Jerip said this in response to a briefing given by the project supervisor, who highlighted the shortage of ‘Belian’ wood — which was in JKR’s building specification.
The one-lane bridge, costing some RM1.5 million, is an alternative route that would take travellers between five and 10 minutes to commute between Bengoh Resettlement Scheme (BRS) in Penrissen to Bau town.
Currently, a journey between the two points would take an hour.
On a related issue, Dr Jerip — currently Mambong assemblyman — said the resettlers had requested that their Native Customary Rights (NCR) land above the water-level of Bengoh Dam should also be compensated as it was no longer accessible.
He disclosed that this matter involved some 3,000 hectares of NCR land, with an estimated compensation value amounting to RM64 million.
“With the compensation money, the resettlers could have a more sustainable livelihood and put them on a much better footing.”
Dr Jerip pointed out that as far as BRS was concerned, there were several major issues that needed to be resolved soon. These would include the appointment(s) of more community leaders, more land to be allocated for agricultural purposes and family extensions, as well as better schools and clinic.
Currently, the school which used for the pupils from BRS was a former Naim site project office, located within the vicinity of the resettlement.
Naim was the main contractor of the RM300-million dam project, which commenced in 2007 and completed in 2010. The impoundment of the dam began in August last year and was completed on Feb 7.
On the remaining 49 families of Kampung Sait near the dam area, Dr Jerip said they were ready to move out into their new houses at the BRS, except for one family. However, it is expected that the Land and Survey Department would rectify the situation soon.
Dr Jerip stressed that the dam and the land above the water level should be left pristine to ensure that the water would be safe for consumption.
Water from Bengoh Dam would be released during dry spells at the water intake point in Batu Kitang treatment plant to ensure sufficient treated water supply for urban dwellers in both Kuching and Kota Samarahan.