KUCHING, Dec 12: Sarawak United Peoples’ Party (SUPP) president Dato Seri Dr Sim Kui Hian is perplexed by Pakatan Harapan (PH) Sarawak’s vows to cancel the Autonomous Rail Transit (ART) public transport project if it wins the Sarawak Election.
According to Dr Sim who is also the Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) candidate for the N14 Batu Kawah constituency in a statement today, he is in shock, and regretted that Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) chief Chong Chieng Jen also criticised the project and plans not to pursue it should PH takes over the State government.
“Surely as the Member of Parliament of Stampin and the (previous) ADUN for Kota Sentosa, which he is now running away from, he would know that traffic congestion in Kuching city is getting worse by the day as our population becomes bigger and more affluent.
“Does he not know that Kuching’s population and the number of vehicle registrations have been growing at 3 per cent and 8 per cent respectively per annum, resulting in the increase of traffic congestion in the city?” asked Dr Sim.
Recently, Chong told an online news portal during an interview that PH Sarawak will not pursue ‘white elephant’ mega projects if it takes over as the State government.
This includes the proposed ART project, a Sarawak telecommunications company, and a new boutique airline operated by State-owned carrier, Hornbill Skyways.
In the same statement, Dr Sim pointed out that based on current growth trends for urban traffic in Kuching, the number of vehicles in Sarawak’s capital city is estimated to grow by 41 per cent from 317,400 in 2015, to 449,200 in 2030.
“Why does Chong believe that Penang, under the DAP state government with a population of 270,000 in Georgetown is pushing very hard to have a RM8 billion LRT system, but Kuching with a population of 570,000 people does not deserve to have a cheaper and more modern ART system to ease traffic congestion and prepare for future growth?
“Are you anti-development and anti-Sarawak? Do you not believe that the people of Kuching and Sarawak deserves to have a modern and affordable public transportation system?” he further questioned.
Meanwhile, Dr Sim also calls on voters in Kuching and Sarawak as a whole to vote for GPS to ensure continuous development in the State.
“Reject DAP and PH if you believe that Kuching and Sarawak similarly deserves development, modern amenities and less traffic congested city roads,” he added. — DayakDaily
