Bung Moktar said the highway project was only 20 per cent completed at this stage while the Sarawak portion was already 65% completed. — Bernama
KUALA LUMPUR: The Works Ministry is ready to discuss with the Sabah government on new ways to build the Pan Borneo Highway in the state.
Its minister, Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof, said among matters to be discussed was the implementation of the project via the private finance initiative (PFI).
“We are ready to discuss with the Sabah government on the new implementation method, whether through PFI and so on...we will look at the government’s financial position,” he said when when winding up the committee-level Budget 2021 debate for the ministry in the Dewan Rakyat today.
The allocation for the ministry was then approved at the committee level with a majority vote after being debated by 10 members of Parliament.
Earlier, Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin (BN-Kinabatangan) who is also Sabah deputy Chief Minister, when debating the supply bill wanted the ministry to consider allowing the Sabah government to implement the Pan Borneo project in Sabah through PFI.
He said this was following the slow progress of the project which was only 20 per cent completed when in Sarawak, construction has reached 65 per cent.
“I want to make sure the people of Sabah can also enjoy the benefit when the Pan Borneo project is completed, if only one package is completed in a year, it will not be ready even in 2040,” he said.
Fadilah said 16 of the remaining 20 packages of the project in Sabah have been approved, 15 of which had been tendered out and one was cancelled due to incompetent contractors while another was approved through the 2021 package.
