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PASIR PUTEH – Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has directed all temporary flood relief centres throughout the country to be gazetted automatically and function as full-fledged relief centres.
The National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) chairman said the agency has been directed to gazette all relief centres where flood victims are sheltered.
“I have directed Nadma to automatically gazette all relief centres where flood victims are staying. Once gazetted, all assistance must be channelled to the centre to avoid bureaucracy, since only relief centres that are gazetted can receive assistance,” he said.
The deputy prime minister was speaking to reporters after a briefing by Pasir Puteh district officer Ahmad Adlee Yasin at SK Jelor, Pasir Puteh here today.
Also present was Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Ahmad Yakob.
Zahid, who is also the rural and regional development minister, said Nadma has decided that all gazetted relief centres throughout the country will have their own multi-purpose halls to serve as permanent flood relief centres during floods.
“Through the allocation I will receive, Nadma will be used to set up relief centres in flood-prone areas.
“There are two choices. Firstly, we can choose schools regularly used as relief centres during floods to build permanent halls that can double up as relief centres.
“The halls can be used by the schools for other purposes when there are no floods. This is a proactive measure and can benefit in the long run.
“For relief centres not in schools, the state government can discuss the proposal with the Land and Mines Office to identify land suitable for halls,” he said.
“Insya-Allah, the federal government will allocate funds to build permanent relief centres,” he said.
Meanwhile, Zahid said based on MetMalaysia’s forecast, Nadma will advise people in identified locations to shift three days earlier. – Bernama, December 22, 2022
