An aide to the Menteri Besar Ahmad Yakob denied former exco Husam Musa’s claim that the RM300,000, Islamic-themed memorial in Kuala Krai was built with funds from a government trust, Yayasan Amanah Tok Kenali (YATK).

“After studying documents and having sought YATK’s explanation, I discovered that the plot of land on which the memorial was erected belonged to the foundation. They purchased the land from the owner to save a mosque built on it,” said Ahmad’s political secretary Wan Roslan Wan Hamat.

Husam, the former PAS vice-president who joined Amanah in August last year, said money spent on the structure could have been used to help the flood victims instead. He also said the memorial was built on private land.

But Wan Roslan said the monument was built by an NGO based in Kuala Krai.

Twenty-one people died and more than 200,000 people fled their homes when flood waters ravaged Kelantan and neighbouring states in late 2014. The floods, the worst the country had seen in decades, brought daily life to a standstill for weeks, with losses amounting to billions of ringgit.

The monument, officiated by Ahmad in August last year, is designed based on Islamic themes, and built to face the qibla, the direction of the Muslim prayer toward Mecca.

It also has an indication of the water levels during the great floods of 1963, 1972 dan 2014.

Kuala Krai district council secretary Shuhairy Samsudin said the monument was a reminder of one of the state’s darkest days, and a tribute to government agencies, NGOs, corporations and individuals who had come to the aid of the flood victims.

Locals meanwhile regard it as a tourist attraction.

One Kuala Krai resident Hazimi Rahman spoke out against critics of the government.

“Why is it when the Kelantan government erects a monument people make noise. No one should question it as it was built in memory of the floods.”

But another resident, Mohd Khairul, said the authorities should have prioritised the welfare of the flood victims, saying this was more in tune with Islamic teachings espoused by the state government.