By Shikin Louis
MIRI, Nov 7: A 250km road linking Lapok to Bario, dubbed the ‘Pan Baram Road’, could be upgraded in the future following the Sarawak government’s decision to take over former logging roads.
Deputy Minister in the Premier’s Department (Labour, Immigration and Project Monitoring) Datuk Gerawat Gala said he believed the road would also benefit from the government’s move to take over all former logging roads.
“With the government’s decision to take over all former logging roads, we believe and are confident that the road from Lapok town to Bario, which is more than 250km long and which we call the Pan Baram Road, will also be upgraded in the future,” he said when delivering his speech at the launching of FORUM Cultural Centre in Miri today, which was broadcasted live via Sarawak Public Communication Unit (UKAS) channel.
Gerawat said the government had been accelerating development in interior areas, particularly those inhabited by Orang Ulu communities, through three regional development agencies — the Upper Rejang Development Agency (URDA), Highland Development Agency (HDA) and Northern Region Development Agency (NRDA).
He said each agency had been allocated RM1.5 billion for infrastructure development, clean water supply and other basic amenities, bringing the total allocation for the three agencies to RM4.5 billion.
He added that nearly 100 per cent of longhouses and villages in Ulu Baram, Ulu Limbang, Ulu Lawas, Ulu Trusan, Ulu Kemena, Ulu Rejang, Murum and Belaga now enjoyed 24-hour electricity supply, while telephone services and internet coverage in these interior areas had reached almost 80 per cent.
Gerawat also highlighted the nearly RM4 billion Miri-Marudi-Long Panai-Kuala Malinau (MMMLL) road project, including the stretch from Long Panai to Long Lama, as well as the Limbang-Kuala Malinau Second Sarawak Link Road (SSLR2), which is currently under construction and will connect to the MMMLL route.
He said these road developments would transform the socioeconomic landscape of the Apoh Tutoh area by unlocking its economic potential and creating wider opportunities for local communities.
Gerawat said the development of infrastructure was essential to ensuring that Orang Ulu communities could enjoy the same opportunities as other communities in Sarawak.
He stressed that the community should not only be recognised for its rich cultural heritage, traditional customs, languages and music, but should also benefit from better infrastructure and broader economic opportunities. — DayakDaily
