5 years after approval, still no sign of bridge in Sarawak’s Bau district

PETALING JAYA: Five years after Putrajaya approved a bridge project in Bau, Sarawak, under the 11th Malaysia Plan (11MP), its MP is still waiting for construction to begin.

Rural development minister Mahdzir Khalid said the Selampit bridge was approved in the second rolling plan of the 11MP in 2017, with a maximum allocation of RM27.9 million.

“However, approval for the siting application has yet to be obtained from Sarawak’s state planning authority (SPA).

“The allocation for the project remains at RM27.9 million, with only a small amount of the funds spent for the purpose of preliminary works,” he said in a written parliamentary reply to Mordi Bimol (PH-Mas Gading).

​The Mas Gading constituency in Kuching covers the Bau and Lundu districts.

Mordi, of DAP, asked what had happened to the allocation for the Selampit bridge project under Budget 2019 since its implementation was still stuck at the SPA.

Last month, he had also complained about the delay in the RM72 million Jalan Kampung Kendaie project, which he said was approved in 2019 but work had not begun.

He told The Borneo Post the projects proposed for his constituency had been politicised, causing the prolonged delays.

He said the works department had submitted siting applications to Sarawak’s implementation and monitoring unit four times but still did not obtain approval.