KUCHING, Sept 14: Driving institutes in Kuching, Bau, Lundu, Samarahan, Simunjan, Serian, Asajaya and Tebedu are allowed to resume operations from Sept 17 onwards.
Transport Minister Datuk Lee Kim Shin in a statement today said the Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) has agreed to allow driving institutes in Sarawak’s southern zone to resume operations after three days commencing from Sep 13 in order to give ample time to these businesses to make the necessary preparations including sanitisation works, and to comply strictly with standard operating procedures (SOPs).
Lee explained that the decision was made following appeals from driving institutes in Southern Sarawak to allow fully vaccinated driving instructors to give lessons as the driving institutes were badly affected by the long period of closure due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The appeal also followed the federal Transport Ministry’s announcement it was allowing motor vehicle driving institutes (ILP) to operate starting from Sept 9.
“Taking into consideration these facts, SDMC in its meeting held on Sep 13 has deliberated the proposal put up by Ministry of Transport Sarawak to allow driving institutes in the southern zone to resume operation.
“Based on the advice given by the medical experts who are members of SDMC, additional requirements on top of the current SOP as stipulated below must be strictly adhered to by the driving institutes in Sarawak irrespective of which zones they are operating in.”
The requirements include double-face masking and face shields for both the driving instructor and candidate, the driving instructor to provide thermometer in the Sijil Kenderaan Institut Memandu (SKIM) vehicle to check the candidate’s body temperature, and the MySejahtera QR code to be made available in the SKIM vehicle for check-in by the candidate prior to on-the-road training.
The institutes must also ensure proper air ventilation inside their premises and lowered window screens as well as avoiding the use of air conditioning in the car while conducting on-the-road training.
Lee added the Sarawak Road Transport Department (JPJ) has been informed by Transport Ministry about SDMC’s decision.
As such, he said JPJ will check on SOP compliance by driving institutes in Sarawak’s southern zone within the next three days before approval to operate is granted.
Lee reminded the driving institutes to comply with the SOPs as JPJ will not hesitate to take action for non-compliance, to ensure the safety of all stakeholders from Covid-19. — DayakDaily
