INANAM Assemblywoman Edna Majimbun wants the State Government to upgrade culverts and drainage systems to address recurring flash floods in several villages under her constituency.
Citing a flash flood on May 8, she said intense rainfall over a short period had overwhelmed drainage capacity in areas including Kg Dato, Kg Tebobon and areas near the Pan Borneo Highway.
“Overflow and backwater effect from upstream areas placed high pressure on the drainage system,” she said.
“Rapid development and land use changes nearby have also increased the rate of surface runoff,” she said when debating the Supplementary Supply Bill 2026, Tuesday.
She said she appreciated the quick clean-up and monitoring work carried out by relevant agencies but said clean-up alone was no longer enough.
She called for a review and upgrade of existing culverts and main drains, construction of flood barriers near low-lying settlements and a specific allocation for flood mitigation projects.
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“Cleaning measures alone are no longer sufficient. I urge the State Government to assess and upgrade the size of existing culverts and main drains to keep pace with current development,” she said.
“I also ask for the construction of temporary or permanent flood barriers in low-lying areas near river reserves and for part of this supplementary allocation to be channelled specifically to flood mitigation projects,” she said.
Additionally, she urged the State Government to stop blaming opposition lawmakers for infrastructure delays and focus instead on resolving long standing basic problems.
She said that in her nearly eight months as an elected representative, she had visited numerous villages and found that residents’ complaints, including flooding, faulty street lights and damaged roads, were not new but long-standing problems.
“What is voiced by the people is not a new issue, but a basic problem that has dragged on for years,” she said.
“The people are not asking for anything extraordinary, only an effective solution to their daily basic needs,” she added.
She said it was unfair for continued infrastructure problems to be blamed on opposition assemblymen, noting they did not have equal access to development funds compared to the government side.
“It is well known that the opposition do not have access to development allocations equal to the government side, but this constraint has never slowed our efforts. We continue to carry every complaint to the relevant departments and agencies and continue to push for immediate intervention,” she said.
She called on the State Government to give priority to solving basic infrastructure issues and to ensure the supplementary allocation translated into efficient and transparent implementation.
“Give absolute priority to solving these basic infrastructure issues. Ensure every ringgit in this supplementary allocation is translated through implementation that is efficient, transparent, has integrity and follows schedule for the good of the people,” she said.
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