Funds to benefit all affected states, 126 mitigation works also greenlit
MORE than RM200mil was channelled to state governments to help with the recent floods, the Prime Minister revealed.
Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the funds, channelled through the National Disaster Management Agency, were for the affected states including Sabah and Sarawak.
An additional RM22.5mil worth of food and logistics was also contributed by government-linked companies and government-linked investment companies through the Disaster Response Network.
Anwar said non-governmental organisations recognised by the government were also assisting in ensuring food and services were swiftly distributed to flood victims.
“Government aid is meanwhile distributed according to those registered in temporary relief centres with the cooperation of the state governments and district offices.”
The Prime Minister said 126 flood mitigation projects worth RM22.57bil have also been approved.
Of these, he said 74 were already underway and 35 in the pre-implementation phase.
Speaking during the Prime Minister’s Question Time, Anwar said officers of the Chief Secretary to the Government were overseeing the progress of flood mitigation projects as it was a matter of public importance.
Lives disrupted: A family evacuating their flooded home at Kampung Hilir Serian in Sarawak. — ZULAZHAR SHEBLEE/The Star
On the Sungai Golok Integrated River Basin Development project which has three phases, Anwar said work will be performed simultaneously.
The project is aimed at tackling flooding, mainly in Rantau Panjang and Pasir Mas in Kelantan.
Although this involved extra immediate expenditure, Anwar said it could lead to savings of up to RM1.7bil.
He said phases one and two were underway, with phase three targeted to begin in May or June. Phase three was initially scheduled to begin only in 2027.
The prime minister said the speed of completing the projects was also subject to how fast land acquisition was completed.
“Sometimes, it can take up to two years to do it,” he said, adding that preliminary work would be carried out by the Energy Transition and Water Transformation Ministry.
“We understand that the land could be in areas with residents or in villages, so we must negotiate appropriately.
“But if we delay even more, floods can impact hundreds or thousands more,” he said.
Anwar said former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra had helped hasten flood mitigation projects across Sungai Golok, with the river crossing both Malaysia and Thailand.
