BY JAMES WONG, NURFARAHIN OKI and VIVYNNA ANN SHABU
KUCHING: The proposal to merge all water agencies under one entity in Sarawak will not be tabled at the upcoming State Legislative Assembly (DUN) on May 6.
Utilities and Telecommunications Minister Datuk Julaihi Narawi said the proposal is currently under discussion, and any details will be presented later.
“We have a process in place to merge all water agencies, and any follow-up information will be presented later.
“However, for now, we have established the Integrated Management Office (IMO) to handle administrative work related to the consolidation of all major water agencies across Sarawak,” he said.
He said these after the Hari Raya Open House hosted by the ministry at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching (BCCK) here today (Apr 21).
Julaihi said the IMO will be managed by several staff members who will carry out various tasks for the merging process.
“We have identified a chief officer to oversee it.
“In the IMO, there will only be three or four individuals tasked with a lot of merger-related work, such as legal frameworks, boards of directors, and so on,” he added.
The establishment of the IMO aims to bring together all major water agencies across Sarawak, namely the Kuching Water Board (KWB), Sibu Water Board (SWB), Rural Sarawak Water Supply Department (JBALB), and LAKU Management Sdn Bhd (LAKU).
Also present were the Speaker of the State Legislative Assembly, Tan Sri Datuk Amar Mohamad Asfia Awang Nassar and Deputy Minister of Utilities and Telecommunications Datuk Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi.
