The Sibu Municipal Council (

Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...

: ''Majlis Perbandaran Sibu'', abbreviated SMC or MPS) is the

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counci ...

which administers the district of

Sibu Sibu (; Foochow Romanized, Hokchew Romanized: ''Sĭ-bŭ'') is a landlocked city in the central region of Sarawak. It is the capital of Sibu District in Sibu Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. The city is located on the island of Borneo and covers ...

in the state of

Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the M ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

History

Sibu Municipal Board

Sibu Municipal Board was founded on 31 January 1925 during the period of

Kingdom of Sarawak (While I breathe, I hope) , national_anthem = ''Gone Forth Beyond the Sea'' , capital = Kuching , common_languages = English, Iban, Melanau, Bidayuh, Sarawak Malay, Chinese etc. , government_type = Abso ...

. Resident of the third division of Sarawak was the chairman of the municipal board. The municipal officer at that time was Sibu District Officer. Other members of the municipal board includes Sibu Divisional Engineer, Superintendent of Sibu Lands & Surveys, and Sibu Divisional Medical Officer. "Unofficial members" which is also known as Sibu Municipal Commissioners were nominated from the leaders of various communities.

Sibu Urban District Council (SUDC)

Sibu Municipal Board was named to Sibu Urban District Council in 1952 when the Council is capable of managing its own finances and internal affairs. The Sibu District Officer was the chairman of the Council until 1957. The original area of jurisdiction for the Council was 3 square miles (7.77 km²). The area was extended to 20 square miles (51.8 km²) in 1957. In 1947, the population was 9,983 but it increased to 29,630 in 1960. Sibu town roads was completed by Public Works Department (consisted 16.61 miles (26.73 km) of bitumen road and 6.59 miles (10.61 km)) gravel roads was handed over to the Council in 1962. First attempt of bitumen road construction was done by the Council at Tiong Hua Road. Bus shelters were provided since 1960s. The Council also spent RM 45,000 for the construction of bitumen running track for "King George VI Memorial Grounds" (now "Padang Sukan Tun Datuk Patinggi Tuanku Haji Bujang" at Bukit Lima Sports Complex, Sibu). Olympic sized swimming pool was completed by Public Works Department in November 1963 at a cost of RM 0.5 million. Sibu Fire Brigade moved out from old place (now MAKSAK Building at Channel Road/Cross Road) and shifted into present Fire station at Central Road on 25 December 1959. The Council also completed Island Road/Hospital Road pavement for Lau King Howe Hospital in 1958, bus station (now used for car parks at Market Road) in 1959, Sungei Bakong Market and Channel Road Market in 1959, Khoo Peng Loong Road Market in 1964, and Channel Road Hawkers' Stand in 1965.

Sibu Municipal Council (SMC)

SUDC was upgraded to Sibu Municipal Council (SMC) on 1 November 1981. In 1991, the Sibu Municipality have 126,000 residents. Chairman, Deputy Chairman, and 24 Councillors are to serve the SMC for 2-year term. During this period, Traffic Garden at Rejang Park was completed in 1983, Rejang Esplande Park was completed in 1988, Mission Road Mini Park was completed in 1990, Bukit Lima Recreational Park in 1991, Multi-Storey Car Park at Jalan Kampung Nyabor and Jalan Wong Nai Siong in 1993, Taman Jubli Bukit Aup (Phase I) was completed in 1993 and Phase II in 1997. New Sibu Central Market at Channel Road was completed in 1996. A new market at Grand Height, Jalan Upper Lanang was completed in 1999. SMC moved its headquarters to

Wisma Sanyan Wisma Sanyan was the tallest building in the state of Sarawak, Malaysia from its completion in 2001 to 2019.

in 2001.

List of Chairmans of SMC

* Ting Lik Hung (1958-1959) * Ting Chew Huat (1959-1963) * Kong Sung Seng (1/01/1963 to 30/06/1963) * Khoo Peng Loong (1963-1972) * Lai Han Yu (1972-1978) * Law Hieng Ding (1979-1981) * Dato Yao Ping Hua (1981-1987) * Datuk Ting Ing Mieng (1988-1990) * Kong Sien Han (1991-1999) * Datuk Robert Lau Hoi Chiew (1999-2004) * Datuk

Tiong Thai King Datuk Tiong Thai King (; born 4 July 1945) is a Malaysian politician who served as Member of the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Dudong from May 2016 to December 2021 and Member of Parliament (MP) for the Lanang from April 1995 ...

(2004-2019) * Clarence Ting Ing Horh (2019–present)

Purpose

SMC is responsible for public health and sanitation, waste removal and management, town planning, environmental protection and building control, social and economic development and general maintenance functions of urban infrastructure.

Administration

Administrative area of SMC included

city centre, Sungei Merah Bazaar, extending from east bank of

Rajang River The Rajang River ( ms, Batang Rajang) is a river in Sarawak, northwest Borneo, Malaysia. The river originates in the Iran Mountains, flows through Kapit, and then towards the South China Sea. At approximately , the river is the seventh-longest i ...

to Teku, Ulu Oya, and Salim roads. The area of coverage has increased from 50 km² during the administration of SUDC to 129.5 km² when SUDC was upgraded to SMC.

SMC public library

The library was started as a Methodist Missionary Library in the 1950s. It was taken over by SUDC in 1955. It was relocated to SUDC (now SMC town hall) at Wong Nai Siong road from 1962 to 1985. The library was moved to the present location at Keranji road in 1986. In 2014, the library was relaunched with a new logo, mascot, website and also free wi-fi service for its members.

References

{{Authority control Sibu Local government in Sarawak Municipal councils in Malaysia