Kota Kinabalu: The Federal Government through its Works Ministry has allocated RM2.43 billion for federal road projects in Sabah this year under the 13th Malaysia Plan's first rolling plan.
“The Federal road maintenance budget has increased 31.29 per cent from last year in response to public complaints over road conditions,” its Minister Datuk Sri Alexander Nanta Linggi, said.
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He said the increase showed the Federal Government has and is acting on feedback from the public and the Sabah Government.
The RM2.43 billion covers three slope projects worth RM35.5 million, nine bridge projects worth RM6.6 million, 14 road projects worth RM1.845 billion and four sets of preliminary works worth RM34.5 million.
A separate allocation of RM512.17 million has been set aside for Federal road maintenance this year, covering pavement and non-pavement works, routine maintenance, slope works, bridge upkeep, street lighting, traffic lights and district engineer allocations.
“This is a rise of RM122.06 million or 31.29 per cent compared to 2025,” he said.
Within the maintenance budget, a specific category of small but critical road repair works saw a 300 per cent jump, rising from around RM50 million previously to RM200 million this year.
“You have to understand that. A 300 per cent increase to RM200 million,” Alexander said.
He said all the funds had already been committed and that work had started on the ground, with contracts for smaller maintenance jobs awarded through a draw system to ensure fairness and transparency.
“More than 170 work packages were distributed to Sabah-based contractors this year, up from fewer than 100 previously, giving more small contractors in the G1 to G4 categories the chance to participate,” he said.
He added that payments flowing from the contracts would also help stimulate the local economy.
He acknowledged public frustration over road conditions but urged the public and media to distinguish between Federal and State roads.
“The Ministry of Works and the Federal Public Works Department are only responsible for Federal roads, while State roads and local authority roads fall under the Sabah Government's jurisdiction and funded through a separate mechanism, Malaysia Road Record Information System.
“This is not us wanting to pass the blame. This is a fact,” he said, pointing out that Sabah's road problems are real and acknowledged but that the allocations announced showed clear progress.
“We accept it. But it must be made clear that Ministry of Works and JKR Malaysia are only responsible for Federal roads,” he said.
Alexander said, on oversight, the Ministry's secretary generals and deputy secretary generals made monthly visits to Sabah to monitor progress.
The Ministry maintains close cooperation with the Sabah JKR and Sabah CIDB through the Turun Padang Programme, steering committee meetings and direct engagement sessions to ensure problems on the ground are identified and resolved.
He said he has also called for more frequent monitoring of all contractors on the Pan Borneo Highway in Sabah to ensure quality standards are met and delays are minimised.
“The monitoring is now very thorough and very tight, since we made several drastic changes in our approach,” he said, adding that past shortcomings were behind them and the focus was now firmly on improvement.”
