TAWAU : The Federal
Government must subsidise trans-shipment of goods to Sabah in order to
standardise the prices of consumer goods in the state with that in Peninsular
Malaysia.
Tawau MP Chua Soon Bui said
talks have been going on for years with no solution in sight while consumers
have been forced to cough up more money for goods that are cheaper in the
peninsula.
"If the federal
government can afford to subsidise the toll charges on federal highways for
billions of ringgits, there's no reason why the same cannot be done for
transport to Sabah as a result of the cabotage policy," she said over the
weekend.
She said such a move was
only appropriate and fair to the people of Sabah since the federal government
had until today refused to abolish the cabotage policy which had resulted in a
high-cost of doing business and living in Sabah.
Chua said the people of
Sabah are being grossly shortchanged by the federal government despite the fact
that Sabah is contributing significantly to the federal coffers through its oil
and gas resources since 1976.
On the Transport Ministry's
rejection that the price difference between Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah is
due to the cabotage policy, she said the ministry must provide proof that
freight charges have no impact on the price of consumer goods in Sabah.
Chua also admonished fellow
Sabah MP Abdul Rahim Bakri for dismissing the cabotage policy as a non-issue.
She described Abdul Rahim's
remark in Parliament last month in his capacity as the deputy transport
minister that the issue was merely being "played up" by certain
quarters, as inconsiderate and an insult to the people of Sabah.
"As a Sabahan himself,
Abdul Rahim, who is the MP for Kudat, should realise that the cabotage policy
is a real and pressing issue which has been the underlying cause for the high
consumer goods prices, thus contributing to a high cost of living in Sabah
since the policy was introduced in 1980," she said.
The cabotage policy is seen
as the main cause of inflation in Sabah, with the business sector arguing that
the federal policy has contributed to the high cost of doing business in the
state.
The business community in
Sabah, especially those in the manufacturing industry, has repeatedly denounced
the policy as anti-business and has made a series of calls through the
Federation of Sabah Manufacturers (FSM) for its revocation.
"I am disappointed that
the federal government has no intention at all to address the high transport
cost faced by Sabah and Sarawak business sectors.
Chua, who is also a vice-president
of the Sabah Progressive Party (SAPP), said the government was playing with
words when it announced that the cabotage policy has been liberalised.
The transport ministry
claims that foreign cargo vessels can ship directly to Sabah, but at the same time
says that containers once unpacked cannot be re-shipped to Sabah on foreign
vessels.
Also under the current
system, cargo unloaded at Sepangar Port must then be reloaded and transported
by other means to the east coast thus inevitably raising the cost of goods.
"Why must foreign cargo
vessels which arrive at Sepangar Port be prohibited from proceeding to
Sandakan, Lahad Datu and Tawau?" Chua asked.
Chua said the federal
government should explain how the monopolistic policy had benefited local
industries because up to now it has been been evasive on the issue. (MKINI)
dasar kabotaj dikatakan sebab harga barangan di Sabah tinggi. dasar ini harus dikaji semula.
ReplyDeletenegara2 lain juga menggunakan dasar kabotaj untuk melindungi syarikat2 perkapalan tempatan.. malah ada negara yang lebih strict dari Malaysia.. tapi rakyat di negara mereka tidak melihat dasar ini sebagai punca perbezaan harga barang di negara mereka.. sebaliknya faktor2 seperti pengangkutan, logistik, pemunggahan, penyimpanan dan sebagainya yang dianggap sebagai punca perbezaan harga barangan itu..
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1Malaysia = 1Harga
ReplyDeletetidak mustahil "1Malaysia=1harga" dapat dilaksanakan di negara ini jika cadangan2 saya seperti yang dibawah dapat dilaksanakan.. bagi saya, subsidi bukanlah jalan penyelesaian terbaik..
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Mengenai isu harga yang berlaku tidak sama rata ini sememangnya perlulah diselesaikan.
ReplyDeletepemimpin2 SAPP yang beriya2 mahu mentadbir negeri ini sepatutnya mengemukakan cadangan yang bernas dan bijak dengan mengambilkira impaknya bukan sahaja terhadap harga barangan malah impak terhadap ekonomi dan sosial.. oleh itu, suka saya cadangkan, bahawa masalah ini hanya boleh diselesaikan sekiranya kerajaan dapat memberikan kelonggaran untuk menubuhkan lebih banyak kilang2 di negeri ini untuk mana2 barangan yang boleh dihasilkan sendiri oleh negeri ini..
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Memang isu ini berkaitan dengan isu polisi kabotaj. Kerana inilah harga berlaku perbezaan.
ReplyDeletePolisi kabotaj perlu diselesaikan.
Deletewalaupun polisi kabotaj di mansuhkan, perbezaan harga barang antara semenanjung dan Sabah tetap wujud.. seperti yang telah dijelaskan oleh pemimpin2 kerajaan, kos2 di pelabuhan dan pengangkutan adalah penyumbang utama kepada perbezaan harga ini..
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Lebih baik selaraskan harga barang2 di seluruh tempat.
ReplyDeletepenyelarasan harga barang tidak semestinya melalui penambahan subsidi.. ia boleh dilakukan dengan memperbanyakkan kilang2 pengeluaran di negeri ini.. untuk apa kita bergantung dengan barang import jika negeri kita sendiri boleh menghasilkan produk2 tersebut.. selain dapat menurunkan harga barang, cara ini juga dapat meningkatkan ekonomi Sabah disamping menyediakan peluang pekerjaan kepada belia2 di negeri ini..
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is it the only solution they can give to standardize the price? I think, instead of giving more and more subsidy, it would be much better if the government can build more manufacturer companies in this state.. we must have our own manufacturer to reduce import and maximize our export.. don't forget.. we have everything to create our own products..
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