PRIME Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said the delay in flood aid distribution is due to the eligibility verification process.

The Bera MP said he has instructed all parties to expedite the process so it will not take up to six months.

“Some delays are due to obtaining verification from village chiefs or parties involved, as some are affected by floods, but their houses are on the 10th floor and suffered no damage to electrical goods or their houses are flooded up to only ankle-level.

“If possible, I want to give this assistance to all, but this involves government funds that have to go through audits, so there are details needed.”

The government is committed to helping flood victims to ease their financial burden and enabling the provision of compassionate cash aid of RM1,000 to be disbursed as soon as possible, he added.

He also thanked the authorities and Bera residents who acted swiftly since the start of the disaster, allowing no untoward incident to occur other than the smooth coordination of aid.

“As we are (always) hit by floods, we are ready. Temporary evacuation centres have been identified since the beginning and disaster management ready from November. Village heads are trained and those living by the river ready with boats.

“I would like to apologise as I could not be here during the (recent) floods. Whenever it is flooding, I will come here by boat every year, but the big floods this time occurred in several states and I had to be at those locations, too.” – Bernama, January 23, 2022.