KUCHING, Jan 2: The Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Dato Sri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar offers his sincere condolences to the family of the nine drowning victims of the Triso ferry jetty tragedy in Batang Lupar, Sarawak.
“As a former Member of Parliament of Batang Lupar, I can’t help but feel sad over this unfortunate incident, which took place at the start of a new year, a time where most of us are still very much in a festive mood,” he said in a press statement today.
In view of this, Wan Junaidi also called on relevant authorities to conduct a thorough investigation on the matter, including evaluating the safety feature and procedures of the jetty and the ferries as well, particularly on the movements of passengers and vehicles.
He said it is important to have a proper safety standard operating procedure (SOP) and adequate safety features available at public facilities like this.
“They need to look at all angles concerning safety so that movements of vehicles and passengers, namely during the embarking and disembarking process, can be done safely. They need to have a traffic controller to coordinate the movement of vehicles entering and exiting the ferry.
“In addition, I also feel that staff working at the jetty should also be given proper training on safety and rescue so that they are able to act swiftly and effectively during cases of emergency such as this in order to be able to save lives,” he added. –DayakDaily.
