SEMPORNA: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor said a ferry service from mainland Semporna to Pulau Bum-Bum will be seriously considered while waiting for the proposed Pulau Bum-Bum bridge to materialise.
“I will talk to the JKR (Public Works Department) and EPU (Economic Planning Unit) to see if we can start a ferry service to cater to the folks in Pulau Bum-Bum,” he said.
According to him, the ferry service would be beneficial to the people on the vast island.
As for the bridge proposal, he said, it has been there for a long time but this time around he would take up the matter to the Federal Government.
“If GRS-BN candidates win the elections here, I will personally take up the application to the Federal Government,” he said at a meet-the-people session at the Grand Wing Tat Hotel, here, Tuesday.
With him were GRS candidate for Semporna, Nixon Abdul Habi, and BN candidate for the Bugaya state seat, Abdul Aziz Ibnu.
Hajiji, who is GRS Chairman, said Warisan President Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal has been talking about resetting Sabah but for him, he believed Semporna needs to be reset first.
“We must not be satisfied with the same old but look forward to a brighter future. Kita mesti sempurnakan Semporna (we must make Semporna perfect),” he said.
The GRS-BN State Government will look into resolving problems and issues affecting the people here that have been highlighted by the Semporna GRS candidate, including infrastructure issues at Kampung Simunul and Kampung Bangau-Bangau which have been there for so long.
“If he (Shafie) cannot resolve the problems, then let the GRS-BN Government settle them,” he said.
Hajiji said it involved the people’s wellbeing, which is among the main pillars of the GRS-BN State Government’s Hala Tuju Sabah Maju Jaya (SMJ) development plan.
“We have a big agenda for Semporna and Sabah. We are concentrating on economic recovery and we are well on our way.
“Last year, the State’s revenue was RM5.449 billion (the biggest in history) and this year it will be more than RM6 billion,” he said.
He assured that the GRS-BN State Government would not let up in its effort to bring development and progress to Sabah and its people through the Hala Tuju SMJ.
More importantly, he said, Nixon Abdul Habi is a GRS-BN government-endorsed candidate who aims to bring the much-needed progress to the district.
Also present were Special Tasks and Coordination Minister Datuk Dr Mohd Ariffin Mohd Arif, Assistant Local Government and Housing Minister Datuk Isnin Aliasneh and several former people representatives, namely Datuk Nasir Sakaran, Datuk Abdillah Hamid, Datuk Basali Hamid as well as other local community leaders.
Caption: Hajiji (seventh left) flanked by Nixon Abdul Habi (left) and Abdul Aziz Ibnu (right) at the meet-the-people programme in Semporna.
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