He cited, as an example, the Minister for Energy, Green Technology and Water Maximus Jonity Ongkili conveying Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s approval of RM5.5 million for the purchase of equipment and repair of 110 churches in Ba’Kelalan. He wants to know from Maximus how the fund will be disbursed and when disbursement will commence.
“A timeframe would be most useful, if the Minister can come up with one,” said Baru, the Ba’ Kelalan Assemblyman, in elaborating on his remarks in the Sarawak Assembly last Friday. “”It would be unbecoming and embarrassing if the BN Government were to break a promise made to houses of worship.”
Baru, who is also PKR Sarawak Chairman and a senior lawyer in private practice, pointed out that 2,320 people voted for the BN candidate in Ba’Kelalan on May 7. “If the BN fails to deliver, the people will never trust the ruling coalition again.”
In one day of campaigning for example, reminded Baru, Ba’Kelalan was promised RM40.5 million worth of projects “which must be a record of sorts”. “I sincerely hope this was not just another political gimmick to buy votes,” he cautioned. “The people of Ba’Kelalan are keen to know the timeframe for the fulfillment of these promises.”
The one day promise of RM40.5 million aside, Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi promised that the second phase of the Ba’Kelalan-Bario Road costing RM128.55 million will be completed by March 2018 under the Army’s “Jiwa Murni” (Noble Life) programme. “The roads built so far, according to the Auditor-General’s Report, have been less than satisfactory,” said Baru. “Road shoulders and drains were not built. There were potholes, uneven and muddy surfaces.”
“Road maintenance was less than satisfactory.”
Among other details, he cited the Auditor-General’s Report as complaining that besides faded road lines, there were untrimmed wild plants and grass along the roads, safety of the roads was less than satisfactory, and they were steep and winding with no proper slope protection.
The BN, he said, “should make a better effort to deliver on its many promises. It promised RM350 million during the May 7 state election”.
He noted that the State Minister of Infrastructure Development and Communications said in December last year that it was impossible to repair the roads and that rehabilitation works would take RM1.8 million per kilometre. “He also said that there was no money from the Federal Government,” said Baru. “This leads me to wonder how the Federal Government was going to honour all the promises, amounting to RM350 million, that it made during the election campaign.”
Chief Minister Adenan Satem himself, pointed out Baru, made many promises during the campaign, particularly in relation to the people’s demands for their rights as promised pursuant to the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63), Borneonisation, Autonomy, oil royalty and the reclamation of territorial rights and the rejection of the hudud Bill.
The Prime Minister meanwhile, continued Baru, promised during the campaigning to restore 183 old and dilapidated schools in Sarawak. “This promise is nothing new, as his Education Blueprint 2013-2015 had aimed to ensure that 100 per cent of the schools met basic infrastructure requirements by 2015, starting with Sabah and Sarawak,” recalled Baru. “The then Deputy Prime Minister promised an additional budget of RM1 billion for Sabah and Sarawak to rebuild dilapidated schools.”
“Not surprisingly, nothing came out of all these promises.”