KUALA LUMPUR: Infrastructure project approvals in Ranau, Sabah do not consider political affiliations, says Deputy Rural and Regional Development Minister Datuk Rubiah Wang (pic).
She emphasised that the approval process focuses on the timing and completeness of applications submitted to the Land and District Office and the State Development Corporation.
For next year's project allocations, applications are typically received from October of the previous year at the district and state offices.
These applications are compiled and coordinated at the state level and then presented to the project evaluation committee at the ministry, ensuring selections are based on merit rather than political connections.
Rubiah stated this in response to Datuk Jonathan Yasin (GRS-Ranau) during the question-and-answer session in Parliament on Monday (Nov 4).
Jonathan earlier raised concerns about alleged preferential treatment, claiming that projects in Ranau were only approved for Umno members from 2022 to 2024.
He also alleged that only applications signed by Umno division heads were approved, hindering constituency administration due to perceived favouritism.
Additionally, he inquired about the delayed response to urgent road projects in Ranau, including the upgrading of the road in Kampung Giring Ranau, the housing road in Kampung Pinawantai, and maintenance of the road in Kampung Mengkapoh, submitted to the ministry on March 27.
Rubiah responded that as of Oct 3, RM1.2mil had been approved for Ranau by the ministry for 2024.
Projects for rural roads in Kampung Tagudon Lama, Kampung Karanaan and Kampung Senaja Sinsilog have been approved.
Applications will undergo a review process according to the Rural Roads Programme (JPD) guidelines, and only the Kampung Giring-Ranau road has been fully investigated.
She added that consideration of applications is based on priority, subject to the availability of project allocations in Sabah.
