KUCHING: Works Minister Baru Bian and the contractors and staff answerable to him need to account for the “unacceptable” spillage on the Selangau-Sibu section of the Pan Borneo Highway yesterday.
They should be held responsible for the unfortunate but not unforeseen debacle of the public infrastructure, which yesterday led to a 10-hour delay, causing massive costs to companies and individuals who were left stranded.
“I use the term ‘not unforeseen’ because this incident is the culmination of complaints and dissatisfaction from road users on the sad state of the Pan Borneo Highway.
“Feedback from the public and elected officials including myself has been left unanswered by the DAP-led federal government,” said Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) president Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing.
Tiong, who is also Bintulu MP, said it was even more appalling to hear that Baru, who is Selangau MP, admitted that he was only informed of the traffic conditions after much outrage over the social media on the slow reaction of the relevant authorities.
The spillage of the palm oil onto the highway should not have happened in this day and age, he added.
“Does it take unceasing calls from people like myself to get the relevant staff to get to work to clear this kind of congestion? If so, it shows the poor work ethic and attitude of those who are responsible for the overall safety, and again it reflects extremely badly on the Pakatan Harapan federal government.
“Is Baru Bian satisfied with the attitude of the road contractors that refuse to take any responsibility for the proper operation and safety of the highway after collecting their payment? What had he been doing during the 10-hour congestion?
“Or worse, is he completely unaware of the entire situation? Or is this business as usual for Pakatan Harapan in their twisted version of New Malaysia?” Tiong asked.
