Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah receiving a huge welcome from the crowd upon arriving for the state banquet in Kuching. - ZULAZHAR SHEBLEE/The Star
KUCHING: Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah has given credit to former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak for the construction of the Pan Borneo Highway across Sarawak and Sabah.
The King said he was informed that the highway would be fully completed from 2026 to 2030 and pledged to return.
"I wish to personally thank... Najib and his administration for their efforts to realise the construction of the Pan Borneo Highway.
"I hope it will be built well and with quality," he said at a state banquet here on Tuesday (Sept 12) night in conjunction with the Royal family's Kembara Kenali Borneo tour.
Al-Sultan Abdullah said he had driven a distance of 2,192km from Tawau to Kuching on the tour.
"Alhamdulillah, my waist is still strong despite almost 85 hours behind the wheel.
"I drove myself except for an hour when I let my son take over because he was bored in the back seat.
"To sum up, throughout the journey the highway was there the whole way. Sometimes the highway reminded us of Dubai and sometimes it was like riding on a rollercoaster," he said.
The King added that his objective for the Kembara Kenali Borneo tour was to get to know the people of Sabah and Sarawak more closely, their way of life and the development in both states.
"If possible, in 2030 I will come back to Sarawak," he said.
Al-Sultan Abdullah and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah began the Kembara Kenali Borneo tour in Tawau on Sept 3 and reached KM0 in Telok Melano near here on Wednesday (Sept 13).
