THE Transport Ministry will propose that the federal government delegates certain authorities to Sarawak agencies to facilitate and improve the efficiency of the transportation sector in the state.
Its Minister Datuk Seri Lee Kim Shin said this was in line with the state’s rights as specified under the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63).
“Although the transport sector is under the purview of the federal government, we need to ensure that the federal policies, projects and programmes meet the needs of Sarawak’s transport sector,” he said.
In this regard, he said his Ministry would be collaborating with the Ministry of Transport Malaysia, Road Transport Department (JPJ), Police Department, Computerised Vehicle Inspection Centre (PUSPAKOM), Commercial Vehicles Licensing Board (CVLB), Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS), Marine Department, Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM), Civil Aviation Authority Malaysia (CAAM) and Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB).
On another matter regarding the Indonesian government’s plan to relocate its capital city from Jakarta to Nusantara in East Kalimantan, Lee said Sarawak must strategise and position itself to gain socio-economic benefits and complement the development of Nusantara.
“One of the fundamental aspects we need to focus on is to enhance our connectivity with Kalimantan, especially through land transport and air connectivity,” he said.
In line with the Sarawak government’s initiative to increase the number of tourists and visitors from Indonesia by land, he said his Ministry had enhanced its efforts to facilitate the express bus service operation between Kuching and Pontianak, with an average of 3,650 passengers per month since it resumed on Sept 1 last year.
“Moving forward, my ministry is working closely with the Consulate General of Indonesia to establish new cross-border bus routes between Kuching and Singkawang in West Kalimantan through the Biawak – Aruk Immigration, Customs, Quarantine and Security (ICQS) Complex.
“At the same time, we are working closely with the relevant authorities to upgrade and improve facilities at the ICQS Biawak for this purpose,” he said.
Lee added his ministry was also playing an active role in the Brunei-Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) and Socio-Economic Cooperation between Malaysia and Indonesia (SOSEK MALINDO).
Through close collaborations with its Indonesian counterparts, the ministry, he added, could work further on many transport related initiatives on a win-win basis.
“Additionally, my ministry is working closely with the Consul General of Brunei Darussalam in Kuching to facilitate cross-border movements of people and goods.
“Among our focus areas is to create smooth and seamless movemenst of traffic at all ICQS between Sarawak and Brunei Darussalam,” said Lee.
