SPAOH: Flood victims who have yet to receive financial aid from the government have been urged to remain patient, as the disbursement process is still underway.
Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas explained that the Resident and District Offices are currently verifying data to ensure payments are properly processed.
“But before we can pay, we have to verify the data that we have. This is to ensure the payment procedure is proper.
“According to our record, we have about 5,600 families throughout the state affected. So far, we have made payment to 3,600 families at Rm1,000 per family,” he said during his Hari Raya visit in Kampung Spaoh recently.
Uggah, who is also the State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) chairman, stressed that assisting flood victims remains a top priority for SDMC. However, verifying information and collecting bank account details may take time, as the payments are processed online by district offices.
He noted that the district offices already have data on families who moved to temporary evacuation centres.
“For those who had chosen not to move to such a centre…. the principle is we still give them the aid.
“But we have to wait for the District Office to confirm and to find out why they had chosen not to move.
“If the reasons are reasonable we will pay,” he added.
On infrastructure repairs, Uggah revealed that the State Cabinet has approved RM100 million for road and longhouse repairs affected by soil erosion.
He said the Public Works Department (PWD) has responded swiftly, with most damaged roads already repaired.
“For the more serious damage, we are still doing the assessment.
“To us, the state government under the leadership of the Premier, we will do our very best to minimise the anxiety and stress of the flood victims and the people.
“Our commitment to assist should never be questioned,” he said.
