THE Seberang Perai City Council (MBSP) will be focusing on eight core priorities to be implemented under its 2021 budget.
MBSP mayor Datuk Rozali Mohamud said the budget, themed ‘Progressive Local Economic Development’, is meant to realise the people’s hopes of turning Seberang Perai into a smart and low carbon city through the circular economy and towards the digital economy.
“The first core is the development of the circular economy through cleanliness and greenery. It gets the highest allocation of RM95.6 million.
“Next core priorities are sustainable use of energy (RM26.28mil), transportation and green corridor (RM18.86mil), institutional reform (RM17.43mil) and climate change resilience (RM16.11mil).
“Other core priorities are green space and maintenance of public places (RM11.23mil), staff welfare (RM7.6mil) and ensuring the ability of home ownership to improve quality of life (RM4.38mil),” Rozali said after chairing a full council meeting where he presented the Budget 2021 at the MBSP headquarters building in Bandar Perda, Bukit Mertajam on Sept 28.
Rozali said MBSP’s projected expenses for 2021 are RM333.22 million against an estimated revenue of RM299.25mil; which could result in a deficit budget of RM33.97 million for next year.
He added that the deficit budget underlines a huge responsibility that MBSP has to carry out for the Seberang Perai community and development on the mainland.
Rozali said the MBSP allocated RM1.5mil for maintenance of public markets and food complexes, electricity bills (RM3.3mil), water bills (RM1.3mil) and Indah Water Konsortium bills (RM200,000).
“We also allocated RM200,000 for cleaning equipment to be used by our staff at public markets and food complexes during the cleaning operations,” he added.
He also said that RM1 million had been allocated to supply, fix, construct and maintain grease traps at public markets and food complexes while RM5.25 million had been allocated for hawkers’ placements at 21 state constituencies on the mainland.
Other allocations include tipping fees for waste disposal at Pulau Burong (RM14mil), waste transfer and transport at Ampang Jajar (RM4.45mil), repayment and interest on loans for solid waste management and public cleaning (RM5.63mil).
For more details and a full list of the budget, the public can go to MBSP official website at https://www.mbsp.gov.my/
Story by Riadz Akmal
Pix by Ahmad Adil Muhamad