KUCHING: A total of 15 infrastructure projects under the Works Ministry in Sabah and Sarawak have been classified as "sick" projects with delayed or failure to complete construction.

Senior Works Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof said among the "sick" projects is the construction of Hospital Petra Jaya (HPJ) in Sarawak.

New contractors to complete construction have been or will be appointed to finish all affected projects.

"In Sabah and Sarawak, there are 15 'sick' projects whose contracts have been cancelled. Rescue contractors will be appointed to complete these projects," he told reporters after the ground-breaking ceremony of the construction of the access road to the southern side of Kuching International Airport (KIA), here, today.

On Sept 26, Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said rescue contractors had begun work to complete HPJ from the beginning of the year and the hospital is expected to be fully operational in 2024.

Meanwhile, Fadillah said the new 6.2-kilometer KIA road is being rebuilt from the Stutong junction to the Bukit Berangan junction, here.

He also said the cost of the project is RM112.9 million and the road is expected to be fully completed in August, 2024.

"This project is very important to deal with traffic in the surrounding areas because this area is often the focus of vehicles from Samarahan, Serian and also in Kuching city.

"It is hoped that with the construction of the road, it will help to generate the economy of locals," he added.

-- BERNAMA