By William Isau
SIBU, Dec 22: The Ministry of Infrastructure and Port Development has been urged to urgently address the breakdown of several cranes at the Rajang Port Authority (RPA)
Sibu MP Oscar Ling in a statement today said current RPA board chairman Datuk Joseph Salang, should be responsible and resolve the problem immediately.
“Rejang Port Authority has to explain the delayed release of containers due to several cranes breaking down.
“I don’t understand why RPA did not repair their cranes immediately after they were having problems, but waited until only one crane was operational, and now all containers have to wait up to 3 months for them to be released,” he said.
Ling said the three-month waiting period for the release of containers is causing great inconvenience and problems to businesses that need their merchandise for the upcoming Chinese New Yyear, and perhaps also some important and urgent raw materials for local manufacturing.
“I can foresee a shortage of supply of many essential goods in our daily lives, if the problem is not resolved soon,” he added.
Ling said under normal circumstances, businesses are using loans to pay for their purchases from overseas, and with this delay in the release of containers, they still have to service the loan interest.
“This is not fair to them and unavoidably the prices for consumers will increase eventually. This is like a chain reaction: cost price increases and short supplies will trigger inflation,” he said.
Ling added most businesses affected are still awaiting the ministry’s response. — DayakDaily
