Song hardly a song in so many aspects

Posted on July 6, 2015, Monday

Work on the Katibas Bridge in progress. Once completed, it will provide the necessary link between Song and Kapit.

Sibu Express Boat Terminal buzzing with people.

Jalan Takan is still a gravel road.

The abandoned SMK Song II project. Toh hopes the project can be turned into a technical centre to train locals from Song, Kapit and Kanowit.

Toh points to the waterfront, which lacks proper railings, while some parts of the jetty are in bad shape.

Disembarking from express boats at Song wharf is a balancing act.

Temalak Road leads to a dead end.

Enjoying the fresh air and the magnificent view outside the moving express boat.

Development has been slow in Song.

SONG: Issues of accessibility and development remain central among the people of Song District, whose population has shrunk from over 22,000 in 1999 to about 14,000 only at present.

Song is isolated as it is only accessible by express boats along the Rejang River. Our journey from Sibu to Song took about two hours, passing a number of small riverine towns and longhouses.

The Sibu Express Boat Passenger Terminal, where we boarded the express boat, was noisy and busy. It was crowded with people embarking and disembarking from vessels.

Express boats that ply the routes to small towns like Song and Kapit lined the harbour, while the terminal’s waiting area was cluttered with luggage and baggage as passengers wait for boarding time.

Toot! Toot! The vessels blew their horns to signal for us to leave the dock. Two hours later, we were at Song town.

Its wharf was cramped with people as every vessel that landed there will drop and carry passengers in and out of this town. After grabbing a simple lunch, we met up with former Song Councillor, Toh Tze Hua, who was very helpful. He willingly shared his experiences, views and speaks up for the people of this town.

Toh said there was an urgent need to either build a new wharf or at least refurbish and upgrade the present one for safety reasons.

“It is dangerous for passengers as the stairs leading up the jetty are not railed, and the platform is in a bad shape. Numerous repair works have been done, but it is still not good enough,” Toh told BAT 5 yesterday.

“The condition is, I dare say, critical.” On life in Song town, he said the unreliable electricity and water supplies were quite often unbearable. He claimed power trips due to fluctuating electricity supply were frequent, sometimes once or twice a day.

“This problem brings so much inconvenience, making life even more difficult than it already is for the people here.

“When the power is down at night, we would have to grope around in complete darkness.”

Apparently, this town sometimes does get an ‘overdose’ of power sometimes.

Toh revealed that the polyclinic caught fire recently after the refrigerator used to store medicines malfunctioned due to excessive current. Fortunately, volunteers at the Fire Department managed to put it out in time.

The unstable electricity supply also triggered a domino effect in Song town, cutting off water supply and causing the system at various facilities, especially the bank, to go bonkers.

“When there is no electricity, there will be no water.” During our short stay in Song, we were worried as there was no water running through the tap for a couple of hours. Locals also complained they had been experiencing dry taps since 11am, which caused the kopitiam where we met Toh and other kopitiams in town to close at about 2pm.

The fact that there was no water definitely worries us since we are dying for a bath after a long day under the scorching sun.

As if these problems were not bad enough, we were told that the ATM in the only bank in town was always out of service due to the unstable electricity supply and poor internet connection.

How can we, immeasurably blessed city folks, survive here? Just listening to the list of problems gave us a headache.

Vision 2020 is a mere five years away, but Song is still only accessible by river.

This definitely decelerates any development or economic growth here in Song.

“I hope the government can build a road to link Song bazaar and Ulu Katibas to help improve the lives of the natives there.

“We would be happy enough if the Song-Kapit road can be completed by 2020.” Toh said the long-awaited Song-Kapit road, which is slated to be completed in 2017, was only 11.9 per cent completed even though the project started last October.

To improve connectivity between Song and Kanowit, he also hoped the Temalat-Ngemah Road, which is considered the ‘missing link’, could be implemented soon with the allocation announced by the prime minister recently.

Despite all these, Toh said the locals would continue to support the BN government, but they hoped the BN would field a new candidate to replace the incumbent, whom he described as having “long overstayed”.

“We just want a new person to bring us much more development so that we can catch up with other towns and cities in the country. We cannot be left isolated here forever. Something must be done.”

And as it is, life stops completely after 4pm, after the last express boat departs Song’s wharf for Sibu and Kapit.

What a shame to see such poor facilities and services. I wonder if the representatives be they state / national feel ashamed of themselves for not working hard enough for the people. Have they been vocal enough to request for the basic amenities for the peoples who have been the staunch support of the BN government?

I hope the people will stand firm in 2016 in their determination to change for good.

Labahua

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Monday, 6 July 2015