MIRI, April 20 — The Sarawak government has been urged to utilise the Forest Concession Area (Rehabilitation and Development) Fund to repair all damaged bridges and roads leading to villages within the forest concession area in Ulu Baram.
In making this call, Sarawak Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) chairman Roland Engan said villages such as Long Silat and Long Makabar are located within the forest concession area, and therefore the roads and damaged bridges in these areas must be urgently repaired.
“The state government, through the Forest Concession Area Board, must rehabilitate essential infrastructure such as bridges, culverts, and roads to restore connectivity in the affected villages.
“There should be no excuse for leaving access roads or bridges unmaintained, especially when it puts lives at risk.
“It is time for the state government to fully utilise the Forest Concession Fund to achieve its objectives as outlined in the Forest Concession Area (Rehabilitation and Development) Fund Ordinance 1985,” he said in a statement yesterday.
According to him, among the fund’s stated objectives are upgrading, improving or providing infrastructure, public utilities, and other social or communal amenities, either within or outside a forest concession area, for the benefit, enjoyment, and well-being of the beneficiaries, particularly native communities, as well as alleviating poverty and hardship.
Roland’s statement came amid calls from rural communities in Ulu Baram following a tragic incident at Sungai Sengayan on April 13.
In the incident, 46-year-old Dawellies Luing and his nine-year-old daughter, Valerrie Mentie, drowned after the vehicle they were travelling in was swept away by strong currents while attempting to cross the river.
His wife and the driver of the single-cab four-wheel-drive vehicle, however, survived the tragedy.
It is understood that locals, including staff and teachers from two nearby primary schools and a government health clinic, have been risking their lives crossing the river to reach their villages and workplaces due to the collapse of the Sungai Sengayan logging bridge.
Locals also claimed the log bridge has been damaged for nearly two years. — The Borneo Post
