KOTA KINABALU: Sabah should be allocated better funding to enable the state to develop its infrastructure, particularly that involving water and electricity supply.
Liawan assemblyman Datuk Annuar Ayub said while the state government has recently brought in significant investment through South Korean and Chinese companies, the relevant bodies should ensure the availability of permanent water and electricity supply.
He said a recent news article indicating water shortages at Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park (KKIP) caused negative publicity while the government is promoting Sabah as a destination for foreign investment.
"The situation at KKIP could also happen at other industrial sites, and the interior of Sabah such as Keningau, Sipitang, among others.
"It is the right for the Sabah government to consider all available options to ensure water supply for industrial, commercial and domestic activities in line with the state's Sabah Maju Jaya aspiration," he said during the debate on the Yang Di Pertua Negeri Policy Speech here today.
Annuar said Sabah was lucky as it has many rainwater catchments at the highlands that could be used to supply natural water.
He added the Padas river, for example, could supply more than 6,000 million litres of water a day to 30 million people.
For electricity supply, Annuar also suggested the government diversify its electricity generation to hydropower or solar.
Sabah is highly dependent on natural gas as compared to other states. In 2020, 86 per cent of the power generation for Sabah was from natural gas.
Meanwhile, 11 per cent of Sarawak energy was from natural gas while Peninsular Malaysia used 41 per cent of the resource.
"The dependency on natural gas for energy is not good as the resource is depleting and will cause the state to have power disruption."
Annuar also said that the Southern Link project under the 12th Malaysia Plan was crucial as it could increase energy distribution capacity from West Coast to the East Coast of Sabah.
The project, which is estimated to be worth RM 1 billion, will also unlock the potential of hydropower along its line.
"Therefore, this project can contribute to the diversity of power generation in the state of Sabah and reduce dependence on natural gas for energy.
"(With that), the development of new towns and rural electricity supply in the Sipitang - Kalabakan district as well as the provision of transmission lines between Sabah, Sarawak and North Kalimantan, Indonesia, can be implemented."