KUALA LUMPUR: Sipitang Member of Parliament Datuk Matbali Musah raised at least 10 issues affecting his constituents during the debate on Budget 2027 in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.
In his allotted 20-minute speech, he highlighted various local concerns in Sipitang and called on the government to take immediate action to address them.
The issues included roads, water and electricity supply, education, healthcare and the economy.
He also raised concerns over basic infrastructure, flooding, housing and economic opportunities for small traders.
Matbali, who is also chairman of the Malaysian Cocoa Board (MCB), said the proposed Mendulong–Meligan–Long Pasia road upgrade, which he had been raising for the past four years, had yet to receive the attention it deserved.
He said the same issue had also been raised by his predecessors as Sipitang MP.
“For years, this issue has been raised repeatedly. Representatives have changed and governments have come and gone, yet the question remains the same.
“When will this road be upgraded? How much longer must rural residents wait?” he asked.
He said work to upgrade the approximately 40km Kampung Bamban–Mendulong–Meligan road should be expedited, while the proposed upgrade of the approximately 42km Meligan–Long Pasia road required serious attention to complete road access to the interior.
On the Pan Borneo Highway project along the Sindumin–Melalia–Beaufort stretch, he called on the government to provide an update on its latest progress.
He also revisited the proposed upgrading of Mentulud 1 and Mentulud 2 roads in Beaufort, saying construction work had yet to begin.
“When I raised this issue in November 2024, the written reply stated that the project was still at the pre-qualification stage,” he said, seeking clarification on the cause of the delay and the measures being taken to expedite implementation.
Meanwhile, Matbali said 7,319 residents from 1,219 households across 21 villages in Sipitang still lacked access to clean water.
He said the Rural Water Supply (BALB) project had previously been raised during the Budget 2025 debate, particularly the water treatment projects involving Kampung Usuk, Sungai Lukutan and Pepolor Sungai Tiga in Sipitang, but the matter remained unresolved.
“During the same debate, I also raised the Kampung Mendulong–Meligan road project and the Bangkalalak–Mentulud road project.
“The answers given at the time gave us hope. But after two years, all I can say is that the promises have come to nothing,” he said.
On electricity supply, Matbali said thousands of residents in the Sipitang interior continued to face power supply problems.
He cited Malamam sub-district, where six villages with a combined population of 2,073 people living in 287 households were still waiting for their electricity needs to be addressed.
“I also raised the Rural Electrification Project (BELB), which uses a hybrid solar system and was implemented in several villages in the Sipitang interior.
“The project was reportedly abandoned in 2019. As a result, residents have had to rely on solar lamps and generator sets as alternative sources of power,” he said.
