KUCHING, March 16: Sixty-eight Sarawakians stranded in the Solomon Islands (SI) safely returned to the state with the help of the Sarawak government.
Transport Minister Datuk Lee Kim Shin coordinated and facilitated their return which resulting in the stranded Sarawakians arriving in Kuching International Airport (KIA) yesterday.
According to a statement issued by the Sarawak Transport Ministry, these stranded Sarawakians departed SI on March 15, 2021 at 0915 (SI local time) and arrived in KIA at 1430 (Malaysian local time) on the same day.
It was with the assistance of the Malaysian Consulate in Honiara, SI, that a chartered Solomon Airlines direct flight was arranged to fly the Sarawakians home from Honiara International Airport.
En route to Sarawak, the aircraft stopped at Biak Airport (also known as Frans Kaisiepo Airport) located in Biak, Papua, Indonesia for refueling.
“They were working in SI under different logging companies and wanted to come back to Malaysia as they have finished their employment contracts. One of them called YB Datuk Lee Kim Shin when they encountered problems for the chartered flight to land in Kuching and also their entry to Sarawak.
“YB Datuk Lee Kim Shin immediately requested his Ministry’s officers to coordinate with the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) on the validation of Foreign Aircraft Operators Certificate (FAOC) for the chartered flight to fly directly to Kuching from SI.
“He also coordinated with the Sarawak State Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) to ensure approval was granted for the entry of the 68 passengers into Sarawak,” said the statement.
Upon arrival in KIA, the returnees were instructed to stay at designated quarantine hotels to fulfil the 14-day quarantine requirement for arrivals.
They will also need to undergo rt-PCR swab tests according to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) laid down by State Disaster Management Committee. — DayakDaily
