MIRI (Jan 27): Underperforming drain maintenance contractors will face termination if they continue to fail in carrying out their duties.

In giving this reminder, Mayor Adam Yii pointed out that while floods could hit due to many reasons, poor condition of the drains should never be one of them.

“Contractors who fail to perform will not be tolerated. “If they’re not doing their job, action will be taken, including contract termination,” he said during a press briefing, held after chairing the Miri City Council (MCC) meeting on Monday.

The Pujut assemblyman stressed that with drains at housing areas and the small ones across the city being under the jurisdiction of the MCC, they must be clean and well-maintained to ensure that the overflow could be properly discharged during heavy rainfall.

“Cleaning works are currently ongoing in the flood-prone areas here, especially in Senadin where excess water cannot be discharged efficiently because of clogged drains.

“Hopefully with the improve maintenance, flooding caused by blocked drains would not be repeated during the next round of heavy rain,” he told the reporters.

Adding on, Yii further clarified that drainage maintenance was under different authorities depending on the type and location of the infrastructure.

“Smaller roadside drains and those in the residential areas generally fall under the jurisdiction of the MCC,” he reiterated.

“The larger storm or monsoon drains, as well as the retention ponds are maintained by the DID (Department of Irrigation and Drainage).

“Not everything is under the council. Each agency has its own responsibility, and the public must understand this clearly,” he added.