RESIDENTS of Kampong Sungai Teraban yesterday morning expressed concern over the absence of bus and water taxi services connecting the remote village to the town of Kuala Belait and also the need to build a pier or ramp for boat landing and fishing activities.

They aired these issues during a meeting with the Minister of Communications yesterday morning.

The minister, Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Kerma Dato Seri Setia (Dr) Hj Awang Abu Bakar bin HajiApong, and a delegation from the ministry made a working visit and held discussions at the village public hall to allow representatives from the village consultative council and also cooperative members to air their concerns and issues relating to the services and infrastructure provided by the ministry and its departments.

A member of the Kg Sungai Teraban Consultative Council proposed a school bus to safely and efficiently transport secondary students residing in the village to their schools in KB.

The villagers also addressed the absence of network coverage by both mobile phone service providers in some parts of the village and highlighted the deteriorating condition of lights towards Belait River.

The minister noted that the queries will be forwarded to the relevant departments and on the issue of mobile phone coverage, the minister said, that mobile service providers are still trying to acquire land to erect transmission towers to provide better services to users in the village.

Another issue raised was the unavailability of Ron 92 fuel at the village petrol station and the inconsistent postal codes in the village.

Badly faded paint on speed humps along the road from Rasau Bridge to the toll booth was also a matter of concern among villagers as it had caused mishaps among road users.

A cooperative member of Kg Sungai Teraban further mentioned the issue of toll payment and requested exemption for lorry tankers transporting fuel to the station and complained of the poor road conditions along Jalan Sg Teraban which is in dire need of resurfacing.

The minister said that the toll payment was initially intended for commercial and private vehicles entering and exiting the neighbouring country after ferry services from KB to the village had been terminated. However, the minister noted that they will seek other alternatives to rectify the problem.

The minister said the meeting enabled the ministry and its departments to gain feedback and input from the villagers on the status of their services and facilities.

The minister, accompanied by the Permanent Secretary Awg Haji Alaihuddin bin Pehin Orang Kaya Digadong Seri Lela Dato Seri Utama Haji Awg Mohd Taha and the Deputy Permanent Secretary Haji Mahmud bin Hj Daud also visited the Rasau toll booth and several sites within the work scope of the ministry and its departments.

Kg Sungai Teraban in Belait District currently has a population of 1,300. Villagers heading to work in Kuala Belait or Seria pass through the Rasau toll booth to get to their destination, but are given exemption from toll payments by the Public Works Department.

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