Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob (left) handing over a mock cheque to Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Hajiji Noor in Kota Kinabalu on Thursday. —Bernama photo.
KOTA KINABALU (Sept 16): Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob on Thursday announced that 39,100 households in Sabah, Sarawak as well in the east coast of the peninsula and Johor will receive an increase of monsoon aid from RM500 to RM1,000.
He said the money is to ease the public’s burden and not as compensation for damages. “This is an approach the government is taking to be prepared for the East Coast monsoon that is expected to hit in early November 2021 until the end of March 2022 involving the east coast states, Johor, Sabah and Sarawak,” he said in a statement on Thursday.
Ismail Sabri also said the Natural Disaster Management Agency for Sabah will receive an allocation of RM18,241,250.
The money will be used for 2,000 food kits (RM160,000), 2,500 unit C-Tent’s (RM961,250), agency operations (RM20,000), operation costs for 22 district disaster management agencies (RM1.1 million) and operation costs for Covid-19 management in Sabah (RM16 million).
A further RM9.5 million from the Natural Disaster Relief Fund will be channelled towards relief efforts.
Ismail Sabri is in Sabah to attend the 58th Malaysia Day celebration at the Sabah International Convention Centre tonight.
Sabah has being hit by monsoon floods lately, the latest was on Wednesday which left a trail of destruction in Kota Kinabalu, Penampang and Putatan districts.