By Nur Ashikin Louis
KUCHING, May 23: First-term elected representative Johnny Pang (SUPP-Tanjong Batu) has urged the Sarawak government to build a refuge or shelter for the homeless in Bintulu.
He said with the rising cost and pressure of living in Bintulu, more allocations and resources should be geared towards addressing the pertinent issues, including the presence of the homeless causing distress among some local business owners.
“The relevant agencies have umpteenth times taken sporadic actions in addressing such complaints, but efforts have repetitively been proven futile. Incidents of vandalism and littering are not uncommon in areas where they appear to be taking refuge there.
“The proposed long-term solution is to build an refuge or shelter for these homeless with better coordination among the related agencies,” he said when debating in support of the TYT’s opening address in the Sarawak Legislative Assembly (DUN) sitting here today.
As of December last year, the Sarawak Ministry of Women, Childhood and Community Wellbeing Development has identified a total of 158 homeless individuals across the State with Bintulu having the highest total with 48, followed by Kuching (31), Sibu (28), Miri (24) and the rest across other towns.
At the same time, among the developments craved by his constituency, Pang called for the setting up of a second general hospital in Bintulu or a major expansion on the present general hospital to cater for the increasing number of patients.
He also called for the setting up of a new secondary school in his constituency to solve the issue of overcrowding in schools, revealing that SMK Bintulu, as an example, is currently accommodating approximately 3,600 students which is far beyond the school’s capacity. — DayakDaily
