KUALA LUMPUR: The government has allocated RM950mil under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP) to conserve rivers to reduce flood risk and for emergency works arising from the disaster nationwide, the Parliament was told on Tuesday (July 9).
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, also Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister, said that RM410 mil was allocated to conserve rivers to reduce the risk of flooding.
He said the remaining RM540mil was allocated to the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) for emergency works to restore structures damaged by floods.
"However, the allocation distribution is based on the current needs of each state,’ he said during an oral question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday.
He was responding to a question from Datuk Dr Ahmad Marzuk Shaary (PN-Pengkalan Chepa), who wanted to know the allocation given to the DID in each state to overcome the problem of flash floods caused by improper drainage and irrigation systems.
According to Fadillah, the drainage system is managed by various parties, including DID, the local government authorities, district offices, the Public Works Department, and developers.
Referring to the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974, he said the local government authorities are responsible for building and maintaining drains. Still, the ministry would always work with the agencies involved to ensure that the drainage system functions properly.
For standardisation purposes, he said the Cabinet in 1996 delineated the division of responsibilities between local government authorities and DID.
All internal drainage systems, including artificial or municipal drainage systems, are under the local government authorities, while natural drainage systems involving rivers and streams are under DID.
Meanwhile, he said RM316.3mil had been allocated to the Sarawak DID to reduce flood risk in 17 locations in Kuching, Betung, Mukah, Miri, Limbang and Samarahan.
"This project is in the procurement process and is still waiting to be finalised by the Ministry of Finance... I hope that with this project, we will be able to reduce flooding in the affected areas,” he said.
He said this in response to a supplementary question from Chiew Choon Man (PH-Miri), who wanted the government to approve allocations to Sabah and Sarawak to address flood problems in both states. – Bernama
