KOTA KINABALU: Frustrated with the bad condition of a road in rural Pensiangan district, local leaders have decided to source their own materials to patch the potholes.

       The ketua anak negeri (native chief) of Pensiangan, Atar Andipoh, said he had initiated a cement donation drive among road users in the area, especially those using the Pensiangan-Sepulut road.

       “The part that we are looking at fixing for the time being is just about 30m in length, but the damage to vehicles is great and the safety risks are huge,” he said when contacted on Tuesday (Feb 8).

       Atar said they had asked the district Public Works Department (PWD) to to repair the road but had been waiting in vain for months.

       “They told us action will be taken but why is it taking them so long?” he asked.

       Atar said the target was at least 30 bags of cement from the public and villagers so that repair works could start by Monday (Feb 14).

       “We will have a gotong royong with villagers to patch the potholes on Feb 14 and 15.

       “However, if PWD sends in its machinery before then, we would use the cement for another damaged road in the Pensiangan town area.

       “We feel we need to take action quickly for the safety of road users because sometimes, the wait is too long," he said.

       A letter calling on the public to donate cement recently went viral on social media.

       Pensiangan MP Datuk Arthur Kurup said he was not aware of the donation drive until he saw the letter on Monday (Feb 7) night.

       He said the community leader who wrote the letter did not inform him about it and that it was the leader’s own initiative to fix the road.

       “In fact, this road has already been approved for upgrading works and Phase One of the project began in June 2021,” he said.

       Arthur said the specific part of the road that the villagers want to fix was at the other end of the Sapulut-Salong-Pegalungan-Pensiangan route and would be upgraded in Phase Three of the ongoing project.

       “In the meantime, this particular road is also being maintained by the state concession company from PWD,” he said.

       Arthur said it was his understanding that the villagers' move followed incessant rain in the area which resulted in numerous potholes.

       “Such initiatives are OK and I would be glad to help out.

       “This letter is only meant for the local community but it went viral and has been manipulated and twisted by outsiders who are not even aware of the situation on the ground,” he said.

       Arthur said in any construction of new roads, there were bound to be parts that were unevenly surfaced.

       “But this is just temporary," he added.