Who will foot the bill for the resettlement of those affected by the new RM3 billion Murum dam?

''Is it Sarawak Energy (Berhad) or will it be passed on directly to the state government and hence the taxpayer,'' asked one Sarawak-based activist, who declined to be identified.

In the case of Bakun, the mega-dam in central Sarawak which is still under construction, compensation to indigenous people and resettlement cost the Sarawak and federal governments over RM876 million.

''But there are still Bakun residents who have not received compensation even though they left the Bakun area 10 years ago,'' noted the auditor-general in his 2007 annual report.