Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Shahidan Kassim said Budget 2018, which was passed at the policy stage yesterday in the Dewan Rakyat by bloc voting, had included allocations to help flood victims.

“I regret the actions of the opposition MPs yesterday in opposing the budget, which included allocations to help flood victims.

“This goes to show that the flood victims do not get the support of the opposition,” he told the Dewan Rakyat today.

A total of 107 MPs reportedly voted for the approval of the bill, compared with 59 against and 11 abstentions.

Shahidan (BN-Arau) was responding to a supplementary question by Sim Tze Tzin (PKR-Bayan Baru), who had urged the government to play fair, and allocate RM2 billion in contingency funds to Penang, just as it had done for Terengganu and Kelantan when devastating floods hit both states.

To this, Shahidan denied that such an allocation had been given to both states.

He also said that the matter concerning the RM2 billion in contingency funds to Penang will be discussed by other agencies, as it did not fall under his purview.

In elaborating further, Shahidan said the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) was only responsible for repairing houses destroyed due to floods and extending help during evacuation to ensure flood victims are moved to the relief centres safely.

“At the evacuation centres, we then make sure they are treated well, are given food and water, as well as providing partitions for men and women, to safeguard their privacy,” he said.

Shabudin Yahaya (BN-Tasek Gelugor) had earlier asked the government to state the cause of the major floods in Penang recently.

Shahidan replied that higher than average rainfall had been recorded in all five districts in Penang from 2pm on Nov 4 to 5pm on Nov 5.

In providing a breakdown, he said the northeast district of the island recorded a rainfall of 289mm and southwest (237mm), while on the mainland, northern Seberang Perai recorded 332mm rainfall, central Seberang Perai (327mm) and southern Seberang Perai (165mm).

“The rainfall was higher than the monthly average of 150mm. It is no surprise that flooding happened,” he said.

Shahidan said it was further compounded by windspeeds of between 40 to 60km per hour, as well as the tidal phenomenon which occurred, resulting in high tides of 2.66m and 3.07m on Nov 4 and 5 respectively.

Aside from these occurrences, Shahidan also attributed the floods to excessive development in Penang after 2008, which brought destruction to the ecosystem and ecology.

He cited, among others, hillslope development and land reclamation, as well as drainage infrastructure, which have not been upgraded in tandem with development, contributing to its inability to handle increased capacity.

He also cited the manner in which rain catchment areas are managed, which reduced the capability of the soil to absorb water.

“In the recent floods, the water that flowed down was yellowish, carrying sludge with it,” he said.

Extraordinary help

On the assistance that was rendered to the flood victims, Shahidan said various items, such as hygiene kits, blankets, mattresses, and pillows were distributed to over 7,000 flood victims.

Aside from federal agencies, he said non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the private sector also assisted in distributing the items.

“Without the extraordinary help rendered by the federal government and federal agencies, I am not sure what would have happened,” he said.

Over half of Penang was submerged in floodwaters following hours of torrential rain that killed seven people in the state. More than 6,000 people were evacuated from their homes following the floods two weekends ago.

Authorities said the floods were caused by one-and-a-half month’s worth of rain that poured down continuously for 15 hours.

The worst appears to be over for Penang as some 7,000 flood victims have since returned to their homes after a clean-up initiative that cleared nearly 10,000 tonnes of waste from streets and homes.

State flood mitigation committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow reportedly said all relief centres in the state had been closed, and that the massive two-day gotong-royong operation over the weekend had yielded great results.

He said over 10,000 volunteers had helped in clearing up to 70% of mainland Seberang Perai and 95% of the island.

Between Nov 5 and Nov 12, he added, 9,389 tonnes of waste had been cleared from flood-affected areas in the state.