| Azlan Othman |
THE Sarawak government believes that the Malaysian state could benefit from Temburong Bridge, the longest bridge in Southeast Asia that is currently undergoing construction in Brunei Darussalam.
Deputy Chief Minister of Sarawak Datuk Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hasan said that there are many areas for cooperation between Sarawak and Brunei, once the bridge is completed.
Amar Awang Tengah, who is also the Sarawak Minister of Industrial and Entrepreneur Development, said, “Among the joint activities proposed are cycling, powerboat racing and a marathon, which will create an economic spillover to Temburong and its neighbours, Limbang and Lawas.
“The bilateral ties between Brunei and Sarawak have long existed, and we have established a sub-committee to discuss cooperation in various areas such as tourism, agriculture and trade,” he said at a reception hosted by the Brunei Darussalam Consulate in Sarawak over the weekend, in conjunction with Brunei’s 35th National Day.
Sarawak Assistant Minister of Youth and Sports, Datuk Snowdan Lawan and Brunei’s Consul-General in Kuching Pengiran Kartini binti Pengiran Tahir were also present at the reception.
Temburong Bridge is a 30-kilometre bridge, which will connect the Brunei-Muara and Temburong districts, via the Brunei Bay.
This will be the first road bridge in Brunei that directly links the mainland and the Temburong enclave, which are physically separated by the Sarawakian district of Limbang and the Brunei Bay.
The bridge will allow land commuters to travel between the two territories without passing through Malaysia, thus bypassing the four immigration checkpoints along the current route, which is frequently congested.
On a related matter, Amar Awang Tengah thanked the Brunei Government and Royal Brunei Airlines for resuming the Bandar Seri Begawan-Kuching route.
“We hope, that with this route back again, the tourism sector for both sides will continue to grow,” he said.