MEI 2023
Trans-Borneo Railway Proposed: Premier
LAWAS,Sat: A trans-Borneo railway line had been proposed to span between Sarawak and Sabah, possibly through Brunei, Premier Datuk Patinggi Abang Haji Johari Tun Abang Haji Openg said here today.
An indepth joint study would be carried out by both the federal and State authorities to determine the best concept for implementation, he told reporters at a Press Conference after chairing the State Development Coordination Committee Meeting (SDCCM), here.
Earlier, during the meeting the Committee was briefed by an official of the federal Ministry of Transport on the proposal as part of a series of briefings by several project implementing agencies.
In response to the proposal the Premier said the State government agreed in principle to the proposal that would be carried out by the federal government since railway for Sarawak was under Federal List in the constitution.
He said the proposed project would complement a similar network of rail lines in Kalimantan, Indonesia to enhance logistical connectivity covering the whole of Borneo.
He pointed out that negotiations on cross-border co-operation at the top level would have to involve the governments of Brunei and Indonesia during the process of planning and implementation.
On the overall state-funded projects implementation in the State under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP), the Premier said a total of 1104 projects had been approved with a total allocation of about RM30 billion.
As for Limbang Division, a total of 226 projects were funded under the “alternative funding”, 12MP and Projek Rakyat involving a total sum of RM440.7 million, he told reporters.
“As at 30th April, 57 projects (23.8%) have been completed, 88 projects (36.8%) under various stages of implementation while 81 projects are still in the planning stage,” he said.
He further said of the 226 projects, 114 were managed by RECODA, 48 by the Ministry of Public Health and Local Government while the balance of 52 were under various other agencies.
On another matter, the Premier said the State government also agreed to carry out a study to create two separate divisions for Lawas and Limbang.
Also presence were Deputy Premiers, Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas, Datuk Amar Haji Awang
Tengah Ali Hassan and Dato Sri Professor Dr. Sim Kui Hian, other State cabinet ministers and deputy ministers.
Later, the Premier visited the site of the new Batang Lawas bridge, the Lawas administrative complex and the Lawas Hospital that are all still under construction.
Sumber dari : Sarawakku