MACC the rightful body to handle RM50,000-wooden jetty issue, says DAP Sarawak man

Alan Ling

MIRI (April 11): The relevant agencies, specifically the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency (MACC), need to look into the whole situation surrounding the new RM50,000 wooden jetty at Kampung Mutap in Bekenu, which has just gone viral.

In making this call, Democratic Action Party (DAP) Sarawak secretary Alan Ling regarded the MACC as ‘the rightful body to step in’, as this project had turned into a national issue.

“I think MACC is the rightful body to step in and clear the air regarding this misunderstanding, which has sparked uproar in social media, in that this Rural Transformation Programme (RTP) project involved a huge allocation, prompting many quarters to suspect a scandal.

“Furthermore, the explanation provided by the implementing body, Public Works Department (JKR) Sarawak, was not enough to fulfil the people’s expectation concerning public funds and interests,” he told The Borneo Post yesterday.

Ling also said this issue had indirectly made other RTP projects to become ‘questionable’.

“People are beginning to question whether our money is prudently spent by the government of the day.

“We do not want public funds being used to enrich a selected few who are directly benefitting from these RTP projects, at the expense of the state and public interest.

“So to clear the air, investigation bodies like MACC or the National Audit Department, should conduct a thorough audit to seek justification of incurring RM50,000 in project cost for a simple wooden jetty measuring 15m in length with two staircases, even though it was built using ‘belian’ (local ironwood) timber,” he pointed out.

“I hope that this would not be a case of ‘the tip of the iceberg’.

“We must not just ignore the issue; we should find out more and provide the findings to the public,” added Ling.

On Sunday, JKR Sarawak clarified that the cost estimate for the new jetty at Kampung Mutap was made based on the department’s ‘Schedule of Rates for Fiscal 2020’, with a rate of RM9,000 per cubic metre for belian timber used for construction, which was lower than the current market rate.

Moreover, JKR Sarawak also said the project cost also took into account various factors such as the condition of the road access to Kampung Mutap, logistics and safety aspects, in view of the area being infested with crocodiles.

The post on JKR Sarawak Facebook page last Friday, which depicted the symbolic handing-over of the jetty project, had many netizens questioning the high cost involved in the construction of such a simple structure by the river.

from Borneo Post Online https://bit.ly/3O36FXv
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