Gerakan Wants Penang Gov't To Focus On Flood Mitigation Project
GEORGE TOWN, Nov 11 (Bernama) -- Penang Gerakan has welcomed the special post disaster allocation of RM100 million by the state government to the flood victims but, at the same time, wanted the DAP-led government to give serious attention to flood mitigation projects.
Its vice chairman Oh Tong Keong said this included reviewing the issue of uncontrolled development in the state.
"The state government should review and re-evaluate whether the uncontrolled development especially on hill slopes, that left these hills bare, is one of the factors contributing to the floods other than the unprecedented amount of rainfall," he said in a statement today.
The RM100 million allocation included a one-off assistance of RM500 to each family affected by the recent massive floods and a discount on water bills.
Commenting further, Oh said in the 2018 State Budget, the state government had only allocated RM20 million to the local authorities to carry out flood mitigation projects in Penang.
"The allocation ratio for flood mitigation projects compared to the empowering of the state sports is much lower. So, it is hoped that the state government will re-evaluate the budget and increase the allocation for the flood mitigation projects in the future," he said.
Oh said Penang Gerakan also wanted the state government to conduct a holistic assessment on floods in the state.
-- BERNAMA
