KOTA KINABALU, Nov 20 (Bernama) — The Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN) has requested additional funding to construct a temporary checkpoint at the Immigration, Customs, Quarantine and Security (ICQS) Complex ) in Serudong, Kalabakan, according to the Sabah State Legislative Assembly. we said today.

Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister Datuk Abidin Madingkir said the application was submitted on Oct 11 and was currently being reviewed by the Ministry of Economy, adding that it was an effort to strengthen border security.

“The temporary checkpoint is intended to manage the movement of travelers between Malaysia and Indonesia. This is because the location at point A708 has not yet been agreed by Indonesia as a border crossing point or international point of entry (PMA) by both countries.

“Currently, control of the proposed ICQS Serudong, Kalabakan site is carried out by the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF), considering the area uninhabited. There is also Kem Luis located approximately 2.5 kilometers from the border, managed by the MAF,” he said.

He was responding to a question from Justin Wong Yung Bin (Warisan-Sri Tanjong), who inquired about the progress of the ICQS Serudong project, including the construction of the access road that will connect Sabah and North Kalimantan.

In collaboration with the federal government, Sabah is developing two sites directly bordering North Kalimantan, namely Serudong, Kalabakan and Bantul, Pagalungan, in Nabawan. The development is carried out in phases based on the approval of allocations from the Ministry of Economy.

Elaborating, Abidin said that to strengthen Sabah’s economic sector, the state and federal governments continue to intensify infrastructure development in the Sabah-Kalimantan border areas, including road networks, electricity, l water supply and access to telecommunications as catalysts for growth.

He said in the first phase of the development, the Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority (SEDIA) was implementing a 19-kilometer road upgrade project at the proposed ICQS site in Serudong, Kalabakan, with an allocation of RM21.1 million under the third and fourth projects. Rolling plan of the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP).

“The state government, through SEDIA, will seek an additional allocation of RM12 million from the federal government to continue the works to upgrade the access road to ICQS Serudong, Kalabakan, which are still 20 kilometers from completion,” he said.

He said under Phase 2, the state government, through the Ministry of Works, is conducting a study for a new road connecting Kalabakan to the Malaysia (Serudong) border. Indonesia (Simanggaris).

He said the project was approved under the third rolling plan of the 12MP with an allocation of RM13 million, adding that the study, which began in May 2024, is expected to be completed by December of next year.

–BERNAMA