TAWAU: Tawau MP Datuk Christina Liew welcomed the Health Minister’s announcement that the Tawau Hospital and Duchess of Kent Hospital, Sandakan will be upgraded similar to Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH).
She said the upgrading process was long overdue, after almost six decades of Sabah’s independence and development.
“The people in the East Coast towns have the right to enjoy better health facilities.”We hope the Federal Government is seriously committed to making the pledge a reality, and that the plan will not be forgotten after the 15th General Election or end up as ‘sick’ projects,” Liew said in a statement on Sunday.
She was commenting on Khairy Jamaluddin’s statement that the Tawau Hospital, Duchess of Kent Hospital and QEH would become Specialist Major Hospitals with the number of specialist services increased to 49 in each hospital.
Presently, QEH provides 44 specialist services while there are 18 at the Duchess of Kent Hospital and 15 at the Tawau Hospital.
Liew reiterated that any project implementation should be completed within the scheduled period without any unnecessary delay at the expense of the rakyat.
Going by the Tawau Experience, she said there are at least three development projects in the district which were started during the 11th Malaysia Plan (2016-2020), but have yet to be accomplished.
The MP cited these projects as the Tawau Dam, Tawau Hospital upgrading works, and the Tawau Flood Mitigation Scheme.
“We are into the 12th Malaysia Plan (2021-2025), and look forward to completion of the Tawau Hospital upgrading works by the end of the year (as assured by the Deputy Minister of Works, Datuk Arthur Kurup, recently),” Liew added.
