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 Anwar Ibrahim said the embankment would be built at three identified locations, with RM2 million allocated for each location.

“I’m not sure why the embankment broke (last Tuesday), but the state Irrigation and Drainage Department (DID) proposes a temporary embankment be constructed at three locations, each to cost RM2 million,” he told a press conference after visiting flood evacuees at the SMKA Lati relief centre today.

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

Earlier, Anwar spent over 30 minutes inspecting the Lubok Jong bridge and received a briefing from the state DID representative about the Kelantan floods.

Yesterday, media reported part of the embankment of the Sungai Golok PLSB broke on Tuesday, causing water from Sungai Lanchang to flow rapidly towards Sungai Golok.

Anwar said the Kelantan government agreed to expedite the land acquisition process to facilitate phase 2 of the Sungai Golok PLSB.

He said an additional allocation of RM800 million has been approved to accelerate the implementation of the project, which was set to commence early next year.

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

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

Anwar said five new projects to address flooding in Kelantan were set to undergo the procurement process next year, with a total cost of RM910.5 million.

“The nearly RM1 billion allocation shows our focus on flood issues as the people in Kelantan bear the brunt of these floods. Flood mitigation projects are given top priority in Kelantan,” he said. – Bernama, December 28, 2023.