By Peter Sibon
KUCHING, July 27: Water supply issue affecting some 3,200 people from eight villages in Kabong will be a thing of the past, once the RM107 million water supply project at the district is completed in October 2020.
Assistant Minister for Water Supply Datuk Liwan Lagang said the project will benefit about 1,400 people in five water stressed areas in Kampung Hilir, Kampung Hulu, Kampung Masjid, Kampung Lintang and Kampung Sungai Benang.
Also benefiting from the project included some 1,000 people in Kampung Gerigat and another 800 villages from Kampung Sg Endot and Kampung Lot, Sg Endot.
Liwan added the treated water supply issue at Kampung Sg Endot and Kampung Lot, Sg Endot, was partially resolved after the laying of 160mm HDPE temporary pipelines, spanning 3.2km, was completed on May 28, this year.
“The project was awarded to the contractor on May 14 with contract period of two months, which was completed ahead of schedule,” he told a press conference here yesterday.
He said that the Rural Water Supply Department (JBALB) has been providing residents with water supply via temporary water mains and stored them in a newly completed high-level tank at Kabong, with a capacity of 1 million litres, to Kampung Hilir, Kampung Hulu, Kampung Masjid, Kampung Lintang and Kampung Sungai Benang.
Another high-level tank with a capacity of 0.68 million litres was placed in Kampung Gerigat.
“Before this, they are facing water shortages and we have to supply them water via tankers. But for the immediate measure, we are now connecting these villages with water pipes, even though the water supply is staggered for certain hours of the day.
“Nevertheless, they should have enough water for their daily needs, he continued.
Liwan urged the villagers to be patient until the the water supply project is completed in 15 months.
The RM107 million water supply project in Kabong is part of the ‘Projek Rakyat’ initiative, where the state government has set aside RM2.8 billion to implement projects in all water-stressed areas.
He also advised the affected people to understand the challenges by JBALB in implementing the current water projects, which will take time to complete.
“Officers from JBALB are doing all they can to implement the 370 water projects, which we have targeted to complete by next year.
“Bear in mind that when the state government allocated the RM2.8 billion in 2018, it doesn’t mean that we can implement all the projects simultaneously, as there are proper procedures to follow, such as open tender process and so on,” he said. — DayakDaily
