By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Sept 2: Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) chairman Chong Chieng Jen questions the status of the takeover deal for MASWings by the Sarawak government.
Chong, in a press statement today, said, as stated by Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg previously on the proposed takeover of an airline by the Sarawak Government, one of the justifications provided is that it will lower the price of air tickets to and fro Sarawak and West Malaysia during festive seasons and holidays.
“The federal government has also given the green light to such a proposal. However, it seems that the proposal remains only a proposal, and nothing concrete has yet come out of it.
“Meanwhile, we Sarawakians continued to suffer due to the slow or literally non-implementation of such takeover proposal,” he said in a statement today.
He was replying to Tupong assemblyman Fazzrudin Abdul Rahman’s recent statement suggesting that he reach out to his federal counterpart to address rising flight ticket prices.
Chong, who is Stampin MP and Padungan assemblyman, also further questioned if the airline takeover proposal has been shelved, including takeover cost, annual estimated cost for operation and proposed business model, including estimated ticket prices offered by this State-owned airline to Sarawakians.
He said these are all pertinent questions that all Sarawakians are entitled to ask and know.
“If the State government can plan to implement cheaper air ticket prices by subsidising its own airline, what is stopping the Sarawak government from providing the subsidy now for the benefit of Sarawakians? When there’s a will, there is a way,” he said.
Meanwhile, Chong said the Ministry of Transport under Anthony Loke, for the first time in the history of Malaysia, has implemented a maximum price for certain flights during certain festive seasons by arranging with airlines for extra flights and subsidising part of the fare above the ascertained price ceiling.
Nevertheless, he said, this is a temporary measure, and a certain amount has been set aside for festive seasons and beyond that, there was no budget therefor.
He added that the Sarawak government could emulate and supplement this effort by expanding the subsidy beyond that which the federal government budgeted. — DayakDaily
