PKR wants Sarawak govt to furnish detail on RM3.36m wireless walk project

MIRI: The state government should reveal the full details of the RM3.36 million upgrading works of the Wireless Walk along North Yu Seng Road to ensure the project will not tarnish Miri City's tourism image once it is fully completed.
PKR Member of Parliament Dr Michael Teo Yung Keng said the state's Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports Ministry should not rush to complete the project before getting feedback from the stakeholder and resolving several issues highlighted by members of the public to him.
"Issues such as cleanliness, traffic congestion, pedestrian safety, overcrowding, smoke, wastewater management and even flash floods along the road (should be resolved)," he said in a statement here today.
Dr Teo denied the allegation by certain groups that misunderstood his media statement last week that claimed he wanted the state government to cancel the project.
"It is not true, we are merely asking for more transparent and open discussion to demonstrate to the public that all relevant studies have been done and that the upgrading works will not be another white elephant project," he said.
He said Miri City could not afford another "white elephant" project that would be an eyesore for the city that relied heavily on the tourism sector.
Last week, Teo suggested that the state government halted temporarily the ongoing upgrading works of the Wireless Walk project to allow the stakeholders to voice their concerns and the state Tourism, Arts and Culture Assistant Minister Datuk Lee Kim Shin responded by assuring that the project would not bring negative impacts as it placed importance on hygienic and cleanliness matters.
The upgrading works on the 500m-Wireless Walk started on Feb 9, 2018, with expected completion by October this year.
It can accommodate 66 stalls, five food trucks selling food and drinks as well as Wifi facilities and 12 female and male public toilets.
For the record, North Yu Seng road is one of the busiest roads in the city with many entertainment outlets, restaurants, hotels and homestays operating in the nearby areas. — Bernama