A TOTAL of RM950mil has been allocated under the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP) to conserve rivers, reduce flood risks and undertake emergency works arising from the disaster, says Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof.
The Deputy Prime Minister, who is also the Energy Transition and Water Transformation Minister, said of that amount, RM410mil had been allocated to conserve rivers to reduce the risk of flooding.
He added that the remaining RM540mil would be allocated to the Irrigation and Drainage Department (DID) for emergency work to restore structures damaged by floods.
“However, the distribution of the allocation will be based on the current needs of each state,” he said during Question and Answer Time.
He was responding to a question from Datuk Dr Ahmad Marzuk Shaary (PN-Pengkalan Chepa), who wanted to know the allocation given to the respective state DIDs to overcome flash floods due to improper drainage and irrigation systems.
Fadillah also explained that the drainage systems were currently managed by several agencies, including the DID, the local council, district offices, the Public Works Department and developers.
Referring to the Street, Drainage and Building Act 1974, Fadillah said that while the responsibility to build and maintain drains was under the local government authorities, the ministry would work with the related agencies to ensure that the drainage systems functioned well.
For standardisation purposes, he said, the Cabinet in 1996 delineated the division of responsibilities between local councils and the DID.
He noted that local councils were responsible for all internal drainage systems, including artificial or municipal drainage systems, while the DID managed natural drainage systems such as rivers and streams.
On a separate matter, he said RM316.3mil had been allocated to the DID in Sarawak to reduce flood risk in some 17 locations in Kuching, Betung, Mukah, Miri, Limbang and Samarahan, among others.
“This project is in the procurement process and is still awaiting finalisation by the Finance Ministry.
“I hope that with this project, we will be able to reduce flooding in the affected areas,” he told Chiew Choon Man (PH-Miri).
Chiew wanted the Government to approve allocations to deal with flood problems in Sabah and Sarawak.
