Twenty houses destroyed in Tanjung Labian and Tanjung Batu following an intrusion by armed terrorists from the southern Philippines will be immediately rebuilt, said Lahad Datu district officer Zulkifli Nasir.

He said a contractor will be engaged soon to carry out construction on homes which were categorised as destroyed.

“This will allow the affected villagers to reoccupy their houses and resume their lives as usual," he told reporters after joining Sabah state secretary Sukarti Wakiman and East Sabah Safety Zone (ESSCOM) director-general Mohammad Mentek on a visit to the two villages today.

He said the reconstruction only involved houses which had grants and belonged to Malaysian citizens.

This is a short-term measure to overcome the problems of villagers in the Tanjung Labian Zone who were displaced and whose houses were damaged, he said.

Zulkifli added that in the long run, a resettlement will be created in Kampung Tanjung Labian on 600 hectares of land which has been identified and gazetted.

- Bernama