Tawau: Sri Tanjong Assemblyman Chan Foong Hin urged the authorities to repair Jalan Sungai Burong as the road is vital for the oil palm industry as well as tourism industry in the district.According to him, the muddy road, which is used by an oil palm factory, estates and several oil palm collection centres, is gravelled up to two kilometres only.
"This situation is very difficult for loaded oil palm trucks especially during the rainy seasonÉ the same applies to a resort which is the Sipadan Mangrove Resort (SMR) that shares the same path," he said.
Chan said the Federal Government through the Secretariat of Public Private Partnership (UKAS) in 2012 had approved an allocation of RM48,980,000 for the construction of a paved road along the 28 kilometres from the junction of Jalan Balung-Lahad Datu to SMR for the success of the resort.
Announcement of the provision, he said, took place in September 2012 during the opening of the SMR but nine months later, there is still no positive progress on the construction of the Sungai Burong road.
"This project should be completed in April 2014 as announced.
The question is whether the provision has been delivered?
If not, who is responsible to maintain the road?
"If the road is left as it is, SMR may never be developed and at the same time, road users' welfare is ignored," he said.
The SMR with RM441 million investment value, built at the end of the Sg Burong road is an Entry Point Project (EPP) under the Economic Transformation Programme (ETP).
The aim is to provide for a travellers' stopover before going to Sipadan Island which is only 30-minutes away.
The project is expected to create 334 jobs and help develop tourism in Tawau.
_(1).png)
