A dilapidated bridge only gets fixed when it went viral

It was heartbreaking to see the viral photos of students crossing a dilapidated suspension bridge two days ago.

For the sake of education, some students in a village were seen carefully crossing the bridge made of welded wire mesh and decayed wood planks.

But the sadness turned into ‘anger’ when the photo thought to have happened abroad was actually an incident in Sandakan, Sabah.

Coincidentally, the photos were captured by a photographer from Bernama that I used to know several years ago.

Thank you, Arjasneh Ahmad. The photographer who revealed the reality of the people living in the rural areas as their struggles are often overlooked.

What makes me even more disappointed was that some villagers said that they were previously promised to get a more sturdy and safer bridge every single time the state elections swings around.

A social media user also revealed the pledge made by a candidate in 2018 to build a new bridge was never fulfilled, even after he won the seat.

It's obvious that politicians in Sabah chose to prioritise their quest for power, while the people of Sabah dealt with another state election just two years after the general election due to political unrest in the state.

Imagine how many bridges could have been built and roads could been paved with the RM186 million used for the state election?

Although I received news that several parties and even party representatives have changed the decayed decks of the bridge with new planks, a new and sturdy bridge is needed for the long-term.

Issues such as this does not need to go viral and gain national attention first before everyone starts chasing around to play their part.