KOTA KINABALU: A dam is the best option to meet the state’s water shortage problem, Sabah Infrastructure Development Minister Peter Anthony told the state legislative assembly today.
Anthony said all districts in Sabah were experiencing water shortages and the state had to act quickly to plug the problem.
He said the previous government had planned to build the Kaiduan Dam, which would have been able to supply 1,000 million litres of water a day.
“As for the new government’s plans, after looking at the water situation in areas like Beaufort, Papar, Putatan, Kota Kinabalu, Inanam and Tuaran, we found we are still short between 10% and 15%.
“This means we still need a dam, which is an alternative that we have to take whether we like or not… we must find a way to overcome the water problem,” Anthony said in reply to Tambunan assemblyman Jeffrey Kitingan during question time.
Anthony said the government had considered the previous site in Kaiduan and another site in Mandalipau, Papar, which is further down the same river.
Villagers in Papar previously protested the proposed construction of the RM2 billion dam along the Papar River, which would see their lands and homes submerged under 200 metres of water.
Anthony was earlier quoted as saying that “only several villages involving about 200 people would be affected by the (Papar dam) project” and that there would be no problem relocating them.
Meanwhile, Michael Frederick, a spokesman for the villagers, said the people affected by the dam were concerned because Anthony had not even bothered to canvas the opinion of locals before announcing the project.
“This new dam that Anthony has proposed is even worse than the previous Kaiduan Dam, even if it is smaller in size.
“The same river is affected and, because of its location, more people will have to be relocated,” he said. - FMT
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