I got Federal to lift curbs on shipping: Hajiji
Published on: Friday, October 13, 2023
By:
Sherell Jeffrey, James Sarda
This fourteenth of a series is in conjunction with Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor’s third year as Sabah Chief Minister. More tomorrow
Kota Kinabalu: There are no longer any restrictions for ships travelling direct to Sabah, following efforts by the Gabungan Rakyat Sabah-led State Government.
“I brought this up at a Federal-level meeting. There is no such thing as ship movement control. This is determined by the (nature of) business,” said Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
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“We have many ships coming directly to Sabah to unload their goods and if Sabah has the goods they want they will bring the products (back) with them.
“There are also ships that go to Port Klang rather than Sabah because Sabah has no commodities to ship out.
“Instances where ships unload their goods in Port Klang before shipping them to Sabah are more costly due to transportation and other expenses.
“Apart from that, there are no limits on ships coming here directly,” he told Daily Express in an exclusive to mark his third year as Chief Minister.
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He said the Cabotage Policy requiring all vessels to go to Port Klang first and load their cargo to MISC-registered vessels heading for Sabah has been lifted somewhat.
“Whether or not the shipping company and businessmen come to Sabah is entirely up to them.
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“Those who do come have products they want to buy from here,” he said.
Citing the multibillion ringgit SK Nixilis and Kibing operations, he said their ships come when they have goods to load and unload.
For the record, the 1980 Cabotage Policy was introduced by then Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir, whereby all shipping lines should call at Port Klang before continuing their journey to Kuching and Kota Kinabalu.
The policy has been blamed for the 30 per cent higher cost of living in Labuan, Sabah and Sarawak.
Meanwhile, the frequent congestion on west coast roads, especially to and fro Tuaran and Papar to the State Capital would be addressed.
“This is something we plan to do. I brought this up in the Cabinet sometime last year. In fact, this was suggested to me several times,” said Hajiji.
Citing routes from Tuaran, Papar and Penampang, he said traffic is terrible.
“Congestion would persist even if the present Pan Borneo Highway is extended.
“Hence, additional infrastructure is necessary. Our officers are looking into this and that includes the finances,” he said.
He said a similar plan was made when the Barisan Nasional was in power but it failed to gain traction.
“Instead of us footing the bill for the project’s inception and operation for a set length of time – perhaps 30 years – I suggest that we merely pave the way,” he said.
Plans were made in 2021 for Sabah’s State Capital to have its own rapid transit system with the proposed deal involving four firms, including a subsidiary of the Sabah Government’s investment arm Qhazanah Sabah Bhd (QSB).
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