PAPAR: Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) candidate for Limbahau, Datuk Johnny Mositun (pic), said there are better alternatives to building the Papar Dam to overcome the water supply problem in the State’s west coast.
Mositun, who is PBS Vice-President, said the alternatives include increasing water treatment plants and reservoirs as this is more proactive and cost-effective than building a dam, which would disrupt river flows.
Taking the water treatment plant in Kampung Kogopon, near here, as an example, Mositun said the water of Sungai Kaiduan could be extracted and processed at the plant before being channelled to residents in this district and its surrounding areas.
“This is one of the methods to resolve the water supply problem. Between Kampung Kaiduan and Papar, there are many places for building water treatment plants and reservoirs. There would be no adverse effects (on villages), unlike the building of such a massive dam.
“I think this method will not involve high costs and will not cause uneasiness among the community here. The river will not be affected and can flow its usual course. Tourism activities can also be conducted,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mositun, a former Sabah State Assembly Deputy Speaker, said he would take advantage of the Pan Borneo Highway project, which involves the Jalan Papar Lama alignment in Limbahau, to boost the economy of the local population.
This includes constructing commercial buildings along the highway to enable residents to trade and widen their sources of income, he added.
Mositun also pledged to build a secondary school and a health clinic in Limbahau if elected as State Assemblyman.
Mositun will face seven other candidates in the new seat of Limbahau, which has 12,739 voters, in the election on Sept 26.
The other contenders are Datuk Juil Nuatim of Warisan, Cornelius Frederick @ Michael Fj Sulip (LDP), Susanna Jainim Jaris (Usno), Aubrey G Sham (PCS), Evelyn June Charlie (Gagasan) and independents Pius Lokiom and Luarence Onjuman.
