MIRI – Miri incumbent MP Dr Michael Teo Yu Keng said he initially planned to retire this 15th general election (GE15), but decided to stay on and defend his seat as he still has plans for the development of Miri.
“A lot of people say I’m old, but I don’t mind. I will keep on working hard. Actually, I had planned to retire.
“But if Pakatan Harapan (PH) wins the election and Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim succeeds as prime minister, I will definitely strive for Miri to set up a cardiac specialist department at Miri Hospital and build low-cost housing.
“I want to go back into Parliament and tell the prime minister that the people of Miri need a cardiac specialist department and low-cost housing,” he said, pointing out that many heart disease patients in Miri were forced to go to Brunei for treatment.
In the event of a cardiovascular blockage, Dr Teo said, time is of the essence in saving lives as the blood vessels must be unclogged immediately.
He added that Miri Hospital has a cardiologist, but not the medical equipment, especially a heart scanner, to perform cardiovascular dilation procedures.
In view of this, he hoped voters in Miri would assist the people of northern Sarawak in completing these two major plans, and support him as well as PH in the coming parliamentary election for the well-being of the people.
In the past four years, Dr Teo said he had visited the then health minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad at least five times and strongly expressed his constituents’ demand for the expansion of Miri Hospital and more hospital beds.
He claimed that he even submitted a plan for the building of a multi-storey hospital to Dr Dzulkefly because he is a doctor and knows what a doctor needs.
“The Miri Hospital project can no longer use the old two-storey building concept, which not only takes up all the land space, but also requires doctors and nurses who see the patients, and even the staff, to travel a long way to deliver meals, which is very inconvenient.
“If the hospital building occupies all the land space, there will be no land to build more parking spaces, resulting in heavy traffic in the hospital area and no parking spaces for the public,” he said.
Dr Teo stressed that modern multi-storey hospitals are more friendly to medical services, with multiple elevators set up inside to allow doctors to move quickly.
“I’m pleased that the Miri Hospital expansion project was finally approved by former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and included in the mid-term review of the 11th Malaysia Plan.
“Now the Miri Hospital expansion project is in full swing and is expected to be completed by the end of December next year,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dr Teo had gone to the Miri City Council yesterday and became the first potential candidate to purchase the GE15 nomination form here.
He has been the MP for Miri for two terms since 2013. – Borneo Post Online, October 28, 2022
