ALL suggestions made by the Sarawak government will be taken into consideration in the preparation of the White Paper that the Health Ministry will present to Parliament.

Deputy Health Minister Lukanisman Awang Sauni said the proposal included the state government’s demand to have autonomy in health aspects.

“The autonomous power is not to take over the entire health system but to improve the system,” he told reporters after inspecting the Petra Jaya Hospital project in Kuching today.

During his recent meeting with Sarawak Deputy Premier Sim Kui Hian, he explained that this autonomous power allowed the state government to determine the type of project to be implemented and the amount to be spent on the project.

“Currently, the planning (of health projects) is centralised (at the federal level) and this proposal will be refined by the federal and state leadership,” he said.

On the development of the Petra Jaya Hospital construction project, Lukanisman said the project was 25.78% complete as of December 31.

“This is a positive development as the project is a month ahead of schedule,” he said.

According to him, the selected contractor will expedite the construction work in the coming months, especially in the installation of electrical equipment.

He said the hospital project, which is expected to be fully completed by November 25 next year and to be fully operational as early as 2025.

The construction of Petra Jaya Hospital, which started on May 30, 2013, is deemed a sick project in Sarawak, as it was not completed within the five-year period stipulated in the original contract by the previous contractor. – Bernama, January 8, 2023.