KUALA LUMPUR: The Auditor General’s report chided the project to build permanent houses (RKB) for flood victims as only 40 per cent or 557 of the 1,395 units have not been completed as of March 30, 2016.
According to the AG’s 2015 Series 1 report, due to the National Disaster Management Agency’s (APBN) failure to complete the houses, 557 flood victims and families in five states who were affected by major floods in 2014, are still living in transit homes, tents and other accommodation initiatives.
“So far, 838 (60 percent) of the 1,395 RKB houses have been completed. Audit on the project revealed that Terengganu has a 100 percent record while Perak has only achieved 45 per cent.
“Overall performance on RKB is not satisfactory because 557 flood victims are still staying in transit homes, tents and other forms of accommodation,” said the report tabled in Parliament today.
According to the report, among the main factors for RKB’s poor performance was the procedure in land acquisition from the respective state governments and delay in starting the projects due to difficulties in sourcing for contractors who can build houses at the fixed rate.
“Other factors are the weather, obstacles in reaching the construction site and lack of manpower,” said the report.
The APBN was set up last August under the Prime Minister’s Department to take over the functions of the National Security Council which managed natural disasters and policies involved in disaster management.
In 2014, five states - Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, Perak and Sabah - were hit by major floods that displaced hundreds of families, including huge loses to families.
“The APBN must review the process or procedures in the selection of those receiving assistance in a transparent manner. Such procedures must be carried out quickly so that houses of RKB recipients can be completed early,” said the report.--BERNAMA
KUALA LUMPUR, May 18 — Minister in Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Shahidan Kassim said he will cooperate with the Public Accounts Committee that will examine the National Disaster Management Agency (APBN) over problems found in a federal audit.
The Auditor-General’s report released today found that nearly 40 per cent of homes planned for flood victims remain unbuilt by the agency, forcing the victims to stay in tents and transit homes.
“We have to be responsible and I want to answer to the PAC. What is the problem of being called in? If there is a problem and people want to address it, we have to be answerable,” Shahidan told reporters at the Dewan Rakyat lobby today.
The Arau MP said the agency was performing well despite being under a year old, but conceded that there were issues in coordinating flood mitigation works with the Public Works Department (PWD) and the Rural and Regional Development Ministry.
He explained that, previously, the PWD was responsible for building the replacement homes while the Rural and Regional Development Ministry was in charge of repairs.
“The state governments has been working hard, all parties have been working hard on this but there are problems that do arise,” he said.
Massive floods displaced tens of thousands of Malaysians across the country in late 2014.
Aside from the unbuilt units, the Auditor-General also found numerous weaknesses with the project to build replacement homes for flood victims. It recommended the agency establish a comprehensive standard operating procedure for post-flood programmes.
Following issues raised in the report, the PAC said it will call in the Immigration Department, APBN and the Sabah Water Department for their response.
