PASIR MAS, Dec 28 — The government has approved an immediate allocation of RM6 million to construct a temporary embankment, including the spillway structure for the Sungai Golok Integrated River Basin Development Project (PLSB) to solve the problem of stagnant floodwaters in Rantau Panjang.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said that the temporary embankment needs to be constructed as soon as possible at three identified locations, with each location allocated RM2 million.

"I’m not sure why the embankment broke (last Tuesday), but the state Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) proposes for a temporary embankment to be constructed at three locations, each to cost RM2 million.

"So, the DID’s request for RM6 million has been approved immediately and this job needs to be done as soon as possible,” he told a press conference after visiting flood evacuees at the temporary relief centre (PPS) at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Agama Lati here today.

Also present were Minister of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad and Menteri Besar Datuk Mohd Nassuruddin Daud.

Earlier, Anwar spent over 30 minutes inspecting the Lubok Jong Bridge here and received a briefing from the state DID representative regarding the flood situation in Kelantan.

Yesterday, media reported that part of the embankment of the Sungai Golok PLSB in Rantau Panjang broke early Tuesday, causing water from Sungai Lanchang to flow rapidly towards Sungai Golok.

Meanwhile, Anwar said that the Kelantan government has agreed to expedite the land acquisition process to enable the implementation of Phase 2 of the Sungai Golok PLSB project soon.

He said that an additional allocation of RM800 million has also been approved to accelerate the implementation of the project, which is expected to commence early next year.

"We have to take immediate steps to implement the Phase 2 PLSB project in Rantau Panjang because it has proven to be able to reduce the flood pressure there,” he said.

The Sungai Golok PLSB project, implemented in three phases, involves an allocation of over RM2 billion and is expected to protect 31,000 residents and 66,000 hectares of land from flooding.

At the same time, Anwar said five new projects to address the flood issues in Kelantan are expected to commence the procurement process next year, with a total estimated cost of RM910.52 million.

"The almost RM1 billion allocation shows our focus on the flood issues as the people in Kelantan bear the brunt of these floods. Therefore, flood mitigation projects are given top priority in Kelantan,” he added. — Bernama