KUALA LUMPUR: Oct 30, 2026 — The fate of rural folk in Sabah hangs in the balance following the cancellation of tenders involving 13 Rural Road (JALB) projects, resulting in a loss of RM1.716 billion in allocation for the state.
The call for the Federal Government to review the decision was voiced by Penampang Member of Parliament Datuk Ewon Benedick, who led a press conference together with other Sabah elected representatives at Parliament yesterday.
They also urged the government to channel the remaining allocation to restore the working capital of affected local contractors.
According to Ewon, a total of 112 JALB projects nationwide are experiencing arrears in interim contractor payments and land compensation amounting to RM259.503 million.
“What is more surprising is that the Sabah region recorded the most severe arrears, amounting to RM118.84 million involving 35 projects.
“Although the Ministry of Finance announced an additional injection, it has still failed to close the existing arrears gap, which is highly critical,” he said.
He said the failure had forced the government to take two drastic measures that punish rural folk.
The first measure is the cancellation of a large-scale tender process involving 40 projects nationwide worth RM5.144 billion.
The second measure is the deferment of Letters of Acceptance (SST) involving 87 projects worth RM8.096 billion. The directive freezing the issuance of SSTs affects seven JALB projects in Sabah with an allocation value of RM548.85 million.
“We will not remain silent and will continue to raise this issue in the Dewan Rakyat so that the rights of Sabah’s rural folk are not denied,” he stressed.
The press conference was also attended by Tuaran Member of Parliament Datuk Seri Panglima Wilfred Madius Tangau; Kudat Member of Parliament Datuk Verdon Bahanda; Kinabatangan Member of Parliament Datuk Mohd Kurniawan Naim Moktar; Beaufort Member of Parliament Datuk Hajah Siti Aminah Aching; and Libaran Member of Parliament Datuk Suhaimi Nasir.
