SANDAKAN: Sandakan, the second largest city in Sabah, has once again been left out of the federal government’s RM1bil allocation to upgrade the state’s water infrastructure under Budget 2026, despite being among the districts hardest hit by chronic water shortages.
Former deputy chief minister Datuk Raymond Tan Shu Kiah described the omission as a reflection of continued marginalisation and urged the Sandakan MP to raise the issue during the Budget debate.
“The Sandakan Member of Parliament must take full responsibility and fight for the people’s rights. She should make her voice heard in the coming Budget debate to ensure Sandakan is not left out again,” he said in a statement on Tuesday (Oct 14).
When tabling the budget in Parliament on Friday (Oct 10), Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the allocation would cover new projects in Tawau and pipeline replacement works in Kota Kinabalu, Penampang and Putatan, but made no mention of Sandakan.
Tan, who is also a former Tanjong Papat assemblyman, said just 10% of the RM1bil allocation — or RM100mil — would be enough to upgrade the Segaliud Water Treatment Plant and replace the valve system preventing seawater intrusion into the Kinabatangan River.
“Sandakan cannot continue to be ignored, nor can the people endure another five years of water shortages,” he said.
Home to nearly half a million people, Sandakan continues to grapple with long-standing water supply problems that disrupt households, businesses and public facilities.
The former infrastructure development minister also proposed developing groundwater resources and introducing a zoned water supply system to reduce reliance on long-distance transfers, which he said were costly and prone to disruptions.
He called for long-term measures to address salinisation in the Segaliud River Basin and urged fairer distribution of federal funds among Sabah districts.
Touching on electricity, Tan said that despite the Prime Minister’s RM1.2bil allocation to improve Sabah’s power stability, Sandakan still faces frequent blackouts.
“Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd spends about RM800mil a year on operations. With ageing equipment and an expanding grid, the new allocation is merely a drop in the ocean,” he said.
Tan noted that Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor recently announced Sabah’s revenue has reached RM6bil this year and questioned why Sandakan still lacks basic amenities.
“If RM100mil is enough to solve Sandakan’s basic problems, why has the district continued to be neglected? This raises serious questions about administrative fairness,” he said.
He stressed that water, electricity and roads form the foundation for investment and better living standards.
“If these basic needs cannot be guaranteed, any talk of development remains empty. Sandakan cannot continue to live without water, without power and without proper roads,” he said.
In September, a landslide-triggered power outage at the Segaliud Water Treatment Plant left nearly half a million Sandakan residents without water for days, exposing the district’s ageing infrastructure and reliance on a single water source.
