KUCHING: If Bawang Assan assemblyman Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh cannot solve setbacks to the people’s livelihood, he should not cut off his nose to spite his face by putting down the efforts of other people who sincerely wish to bring solutions, said Bintulu MP Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing.
He emphasised that setbacks to the people’s livelihood were a collective challenge.
“The more that Wong speaks, the more he exposes his shortcomings,” he said in a recent Facebook post, pointing out that it was Wong’s own admission to the Sibu people that the long-standing flood problems in his constituency had been neglected under his watch – despite all his talk of ‘doing his best’.
He said that Wong should face the voters to fully explain the achievement, or lack thereof, of previous programmes to have lasting solutions for flood mitigation.
He said that farmers’ painstaking efforts had been rendered pointless by flood and the situation was worsening.
“Much capital and time have been spent and yet the flood situation has not improved. Does this mean that the engineers employed by Wong were not up to the job?” he questioned.
“I am fairly certain Wong is also aware of the current Covid-19 pandemic, meaning that the people now have to deal with the triple challenges of putting food on the table and clothes on their children’s backs, at the same time as dealing with the perennial threat of flood in any rainy season,” he said.
He said that this was especially challenging for farmers. He questioned who would compensate them for their losses when they relied on the government to ensure that their crops were safe with the right infrastructure.
“Do they have to beg and be at the mercy of the government’s short-term rescue every time? Isn’t a long-term solution more practical?” said Tiong, who is also Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) president.
According to him, the proposal to dredge and deepen the Rajang and Igan rivers to alleviate the flood problem was one solution that Wong should look into.
“Has Wong ever requested the relevant departments to detect and study the depths of the entire Rajang River, from Sarikei to Bintangor and Kapit?
Is he even aware of the layout and composition of the river and its problematic sections? Does he have the relevant information at hand?”
“If Wong lacks the experience in flood management, I could share with him the flood mitigation plans used in West Malaysia that I was in charge of,” he said.
Tiong added that Wong could learn how flood control was achieved in Bintulu.
He said that the chief minister, after understanding the ins and outs of the entire issue, had immediately given a special grant to resolve the flood issue which led to the design and upgrade of the drainage system to drastically improve Bintulu’s flood mitigation systems.
“With the development of Sibu stagnant for many years, it calls to question what Wong has achieved for the people, even having held important posts. It is difficult to see how much attention this leader has paid to the livelihoods of people in Sibu during his time.
“I believe that the majority of Sibu people have many ideas in their minds but it is up to the leaders of the day to seek solutions from the state government to solve the problems of the people,” he said.
