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Nearly 69% of complaints logged through MYJalan since its 2023 launch involved roads handled by authorities outside the Works Ministry network. The platform recorded 68,334 complaints from Aug 1, 2023 to July 31, 2026. Of these, 46,886 were channelled through its No Wrong Door system to bodies such as local councils, district and land offices, the Irrigation and Drainage Department, and the Public Works Departments in Sabah and Sarawak. Another 21,448 complaints involved federal or state roads supervised by the ministry and its agencies. The ministry said 20,762 had been resolved and 686 remained under action. For Sarawak road users, MYJalan accepts photographs and GPS locations across 10 categories, from potholes and damaged markings to faulty traffic lights and landslides. The RM904.2 million maintenance allocation cited for 2026 covers Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan together; no Sarawak-only breakdown was given.

Open burning along the Sibu Jaya bypass has been ordered to stop after a Tuesday fire was linked to nearby farming activity. Sibu Rural District Council (SRDC) said its chairman inspected the site with Natural Resources and Environment Board officers and firefighters. Sibu’s Air Pollutant Index was 327 — in the hazardous range — when the fire was reported. NREB officers told the council that people believed to be involved ran into nearby bush when enforcement personnel arrived. No suspect has been identified publicly and no charge has been announced. SRDC will ask the Land and Survey Department to verify the affected plots and their registered owners. Landowners along the bypass have been urged to check for unauthorised farming, while the council plans a multi-agency meeting over repeated burning in the area.

Jalan Oya Health Clinic is still operating at its present site while authorities assess a rented building for a possible temporary move. A Sept 1 inspection covered both the existing clinic and the proposed rental premises. The move is being considered because of the present building’s condition, with rising patient numbers and staff workload also putting pressure on the clinic. No temporary address, move date or change to appointments has been announced. Sarawak health authorities and the Health Ministry still have to decide whether the proposed premises are suitable and how services would be transferred. Patients should continue using the arrangements already given by the clinic unless an official notice says otherwise.

Police have arrested a 17-year-old over a video that appeared to show a motorcyclist performing a wheelie on Jalan Astana in Kuching. The footage, filmed in the direction of the Abang Kipali Roundabout, circulated on Facebook. Traffic police said they traced the motorcycle owner before the teenager came to the station on Aug 27 to assist with the investigation and was arrested. The case is being investigated under Section 42(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987 for alleged reckless and dangerous driving. It remains at the investigation stage; police had not announced a charge or court outcome. Police warned that stunts on public roads can cause serious injury or death and may lead to legal action. Parents and guardians were also urged to pay attention to teenagers’ motorcycle use.

Batik Air has agreed to resume Miri–Kuala Lumpur services, according to the Miri MP’s office, but no start date, frequency or timetable has been released. The announcement followed an appeal for the airline to reassess the route after residents reported difficulty finding seats, especially on weekends, public holidays and other peak periods. Until Batik Air publishes a schedule or opens the flights for sale, passengers should not treat the route as already operating. A return would add capacity on a corridor used by Miri and northern Sarawak residents, as well as some travellers from Brunei. It could also give passengers another option when seats are tight. For now, existing travel plans should be based on flights that are actually available in the booking system. The next firm update must come with the airline’s launch date and operating schedule.

Kuching North City Hall (DBKU) has received the Alliance for Healthy Cities’ “Healthy City Expert” recognition at its global conference in Sydney. The recognition was presented during the alliance’s 11th Global Conference, held from Sept 1 to 3. DBKU linked it to its community-inclusion work, particularly Kejiranan Mesra and programmes that involve residents in neighbourhood development. DBKU’s own directory lists 54 Kejiranan Mesra areas for 2025–2026, showing the local network behind the submission. The city hall says the approach is intended to make Kuching North more inclusive, safe, sustainable and liveable. No new funding, facility or change to public services was announced with the recognition. Any expansion of the neighbourhood programmes or new targets will require a separate DBKU update.

A small rise in respiratory infections is showing up in Sarawak’s haze surveillance, while asthma numbers remain broadly stable statewide. Fifteen sentinel health facilities averaged about 1,752 upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) cases a week in recent weeks, compared with roughly 1,717 at the start of the year. The clearest spike came in mid-August: the Southern Zone recorded about 1,250 cases, the Central Zone more than 1,000 and the Northern Zone nearly 400. Between January and the end of August, the same facilities logged 64,688 URTI cases and 6,156 asthma cases from about 694,800 patient visits. Weekly conjunctivitis cases also rose from an average of 17 to 21. Sarawak General Hospital saw more asthma patients on several days in August, but the wider monitoring has not found a sustained statewide surge. The Sarawak Health Department is continuing surveillance and keeping medicines, equipment and staff ready. During smoky periods, residents should limit strenuous outdoor activity, wear a suitable mask when they need to go out, and seek treatment for breathing difficulty, a persistent cough or eye pain.

UNIMAS students should not assume the September semester will be fully online: only eligible programmes will move progressively into flexible hybrid teaching. Lectures and other suitable activities may be held through interactive online platforms, while laboratories, practical work, workshops, field activities and collaborative projects will remain on campus when a programme requires them. The arrangement covers eligible undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. The university said each faculty and centre will issue its own teaching format, attendance rules, timetable and programme guidance before the semester starts. The online and campus mix will therefore differ by course rather than follow one university-wide schedule. Students commuting from Kuching or Samarahan, or making accommodation plans, should use the timetable from their own faculty before changing arrangements. No programme-by-programme schedule had been published in the announcement.

Sarawak’s new CID chief has been told to make organised crime and gang activity a priority, but police did not announce any new arrest, charge or named target on Sept 1. Sarawak Police Commissioner Datuk Mohamad Zainal Abdullah set out the brief during a handover ceremony in Kuching, where SAC Kumarasan Muniandy took charge of the state Criminal Investigation Department. The remit includes serious offences linked to unlicensed money-lending syndicates. Mohamad Zainal said several suspected drug-trafficking groups remain under police watch. He did not identify the groups or say how many were involved, and said action under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 would only be considered if investigators found enough evidence of organised crime. Police have previously used SOSMA in one organised-crime case that is still awaiting trial. No outcome has been decided in that case, while any action against the groups now under watch remains subject to investigation and the legal process.

From Sept 1, Sarawak Water customers can reach a 24-hour call centre at 1-300-88-2020, including on weekends and public holidays. The new line gives households and businesses one central number for customer assistance instead of limiting contact to normal office hours. Sarawak Water has not yet published a full list of the cases handled by the centre or a response-time target. When reporting a supply or premises issue, callers should give the exact location and keep an account or premises reference available if they have one. This helps the operator identify the case and route it without relying on a separate departmental number.

A late-night fire damaged about 80% of the Giatmara Kuching building at Taman Budaya, with no casualties reported. The Fire and Rescue Department said it received the call at 11.10pm on Aug 31. Firefighters from Padungan responded, with support from the Batu Lintang and Tabuan Jaya stations. The building measured about 50 by 50 feet. The blaze was brought under control at 12.08am and the operation ended at 1.41am. The cause and total losses remain under investigation. Anyone with classes or business at the centre should confirm the latest arrangement with Giatmara before going there, and keep away from the damaged area.

Voters in Tabuan Jaya, Stutong, Kenyalang and nearby neighbourhoods can now see how a proposed new state seat would redraw their area. The Election Commission map is displayed in the MBKS headquarters lobby from Sept 1 to 30 during normal office hours. Under the proposal, Tabuan Jaya, Tabuan Laru, Stutong, Tabuan Heights, Supreme and Kenyalang would form N16 Tabuan Jaya. P195 Bandar Kuching would then comprise N9 Padungan, N10 Pending, N11 Batu Lintang and N16 Tabuan Jaya, with 116,679 electors in total. Representations are not filed as casual individual objections. The notice allows submissions by the Sarawak government, an affected local authority, or a body of at least 100 registered electors from the constituencies concerned, within one month of publication. The boundaries are not final. Statewide, the review proposes 17 additional DUN seats, increasing the total from 82 to 99, while leaving Sarawak's number of parliamentary seats unchanged.

JPN has asked families to hold off on some MyKad applications until Sept 7 while the new-generation card is introduced. The National Registration Department said printing services are temporarily disrupted during the transition. People who do not urgently need to replace or renew their MyKad should postpone those transactions. Parents or guardians of children turning 12 are also advised to wait before making a first-MyKad application, so the child can receive the new version when it becomes available. For Kuching residents, a routine trip to an NRD counter during this window may not produce a card immediately. Urgent cases are not covered by the advice to postpone, so applicants should check with JPN before travelling and follow its official updates for the next issuance arrangements.

Passengers flying between Borneo destinations should be ready for schedule changes as AirBorneo reviews operations amid Sarawak's worsening haze. The airline said some intra-Borneo flights may be retimed or cancelled for safety reasons, with further announcements to be made if scheduled services change. It urged passengers to check its latest updates before heading to the airport. The warning comes as hazardous API readings spread across Kuching, Serian, Samarahan, Sri Aman and Sarikei on Tuesday. That does not mean every flight is disrupted: the advisory describes possible changes while assessments continue. Travellers from Kuching should keep their booking details handy, allow time to check for notices and confirm the status of the specific flight rather than rely on general haze reports.

A Kuching South smart pole displayed an outdoor-activity message even while its API reading showed hazardous air, MBKS said on Tuesday. The council attributed the mismatch to a dashboard programming limit. The numerical reading remained accurate, but the advisory function had only been configured up to API 450. When the reading went higher, the system defaulted to the message used for the 0–50 healthy range. MBKS said it has told the system provider to rework the dashboard so the number, gauge and warning match official API bands, including exceptionally high readings. Until that update is confirmed across the system, residents should use the official API reading as the reference and avoid outdoor exercise once the air reaches hazardous levels.

Ten Sarawak monitoring stations were still in the hazardous band at 2pm on Tuesday, even after Kuching eased from 407 in the morning to 374. NREB's 2pm table recorded Lubok Antu at 390, IPD Serian at 389, Kuching at 374, Kanowit at 364, Tebedu at 353 and Lundu at 351. Sarikei was at 349, Samarahan at 339, Sibu at 331 and Sri Aman at 327. All ten readings were above the hazardous threshold of 300. No station was above 400 in the 2pm update, but that was not a clear-air signal: Kuching had reached 407 earlier, while Serian was also above 400. API is a 24-hour running average, so residents should check the latest reading before outdoor activity and cut strenuous exercise while conditions remain hazardous.

Police have arrested a suspect and recovered a homemade firearm after a 17-year-old was shot in both legs in Lawas. The arrest was made on Aug 25, after the teenager was injured at a water catchment area in Long Lidong. Police said the firearm, locally known as a ‘bakakuk’, was found at a hut near the suspect’s home, covered with a zinc sheet. The teenager had earlier been found injured after he failed to return from the forest. He was taken to Lawas Hospital and was reported to be in stable condition. Investigators said the teenager had gone hunting with a relative and was accidentally shot by a friend who mistook him for an animal. That is the account under investigation; the arrest is not a conviction, and police have not announced any court outcome. The case is being investigated under Section 307 of the Penal Code and Section 37 of the Arms Act 1960. Police are still tracing witnesses and gathering information. Anyone with relevant knowledge should pass it to the police and avoid spreading speculation about the case.

Sarawak’s proposed state constituency maps will go on public display from Sept 1, opening a one-month window for representations on the Election Commission’s redelineation plan. The proposal covers 17 additional seats and several renamed constituencies; if eventually approved, the State Legislative Assembly would grow from 82 to 99 seats. Notices are to appear in The Borneo Post and Utusan Borneo, while exhibition boards, draft reports and maps are planned at selected city halls, municipal councils and district offices across the state’s 31 parliamentary constituencies. The EC’s proposed venues include Kuching North City Commission (DBKU), Kuching South City Council (MBKS) and Padawan Municipal Council—three separate local authorities, not one generic ‘Kuching council’. The display is not the final boundary map and does not by itself mean the next state election will use 99 seats. The proposal still needs approval by Parliament and gazettement before it can take effect. Representations may be made within one month after the notice is published, but the eligible groups are specific: the state government, an affected local authority, or a body of at least 100 people whose names appear on the current electoral rolls of the constituencies concerned. Kuching and Samarahan voters should check the displayed documents for the exact map, venue and submission procedure rather than rely on earlier leaked versions.

Four water treatment plants have been placed at the front of Sarawak’s next cloud-seeding plan as the dry spell continues to squeeze raw-water reserves. The priority sites are Simunjan, Lingga, Spaoh and Lichok. The target window is Sept 3 to 5, but the operation still depends on suitable cloud formations. Agencies are due to meet on Sept 1 to decide how it will be carried out, so the dates are not a confirmed flight schedule. The exercise is intended to support both water sources and power dams. The wider response is already moving. From Aug 18 to 29, JBALB’s 24 water tankers and 74 contracted lorries—98 vehicles in all—made 680 trips and delivered 3.344 million litres across Samarahan, Sri Aman, Betong, Limbang and Miri. The disaster committee has also approved RM400,000 for additional water tanks and central collection points in larger villages. Separately, bottled-water assistance recorded 1,943 cases from Jan 1 to Aug 26, covering 49,523 families and 225,822 people. Communities facing supply interruptions should follow JBALB or Sarawak Water notices for the operating details of their local tanker routes and collection points.

Kuching’s air quality worsened again on Monday afternoon, with the API reaching 366 at 4pm. Samarahan stood at 350 and Serian at 445, while Lundu reached 405. All four readings were in the hazardous band. The same 4pm update placed Tebedu at 399, Lubok Antu at 396 and Sri Aman at 334, also hazardous. Sarikei, Sibu and Mukah were in the very unhealthy range at 277, 243 and 216 respectively. API readings move through the day, so the afternoon figures should not be treated as a forecast for tonight. Sarawak’s disaster committee said there was no need for an emergency declaration yet. If a local reading reaches 500, the matter would first be taken up with the National Disaster Management Agency, and any emergency would apply only to the affected locality—not the whole state. Offices, schools and activities in that locality would be required to close under such a declaration, apart from essential services. For areas at API 201 and above, residents are advised to limit outdoor exposure and wear an N95 mask when going out, or at least a three-ply mask if one is unavailable. Children, older people and those with breathing problems should take extra care and seek medical help if symptoms worsen.